Nigeria: Inflation ticks down in February

Consumer prices rose 0.73% on a month-on-month basis in February, marginally below January’s 0.74% increase. The slight moderation was largely driven by a softer increase in food prices.

Inflation ticked down from 11.4% in January to 11.3% in February. As a result, it moved closer down to the Central Bank’s target range of 6.0%–9.0%.

Meanwhile, core consumer prices, which exclude volatile agricultural produce, rose 0.65% month-on-month in February, well below January’s 0.81% increase. Core inflation ticked down to 9.8% in February (January: 9.9%).

Nigeria Inflation Forecast

FocusEconomics Consensus Forecast panelists expect inflation to average 11.8% in 2019, which is unchanged from last month’s forecast. In 2020, inflation is seen averaging 11.8%.