Food prices highest in Kogi, Osun, Cross River in November — NBS

Prices of food items rose the most in Kogi, Osun, Cross River States in November, the consumer price index (CPI) report released on Tuesday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown.

The report revealed that on a month on month basis, food price inflation was highest in Kogi at 3.37 per cent, Osun at 3.08 per cent and Cross River at 2.93 per cent.

Akwa Ibom had 0.60 per cent rise, Edo had 0.43 per cent, while Nasarawa recorded price deflation or negative inflation. (general decrease in the general price level of food or negative food inflation rate).

The report said the food inflation on a year on year basis was highest in Kogi at 24.00 per cent, Sokoto and Zamfara at 20.60 per cent and Ebonyi at 20.20 per cent, while Abia at 16.20 per cent, Bauchi at 15.60 percent and Gombe and Nasarawa at 15.00 per cent recorded the slowest rise.

According to the report, the headline index increased by 1.60 per cent in November.

“This is 0.06 percentage point higher than the rate recorded in October at 1.54 percent.

“The percentage change in the average composite CPI for the twelve months period ending November over the average of the CPI for the previous twelve months period was 12.92 per cent, representing a 0.26 percentage point increase over 12.66 percent recorded in October,” the report said.

It said the rise in the food index was caused by increases in prices of bread and cereals, potatoes, yam and other tubers, meat, fish, fruits, vegetables and oils and fats.

The NBS said the composite food index rose sharply by 18.30 percent in November compared to 17.38 percent in October.

“On a month on month basis, the food sub-index increased by 2.04 per cent in November up by 0.08 percent points from 1.96 percent recorded in October.

“The average annual rate of change of the food sub-index for the twelve-month period ending November over the previous twelve-month average was 15.75 percent, 0.33 per cent points from the average annual rate of change recorded in October at 15.42 percent, ” it said.

All Items inflation

The report said in November, all items inflation on year on year basis was highest in Bauchi at 19.67 per cent, Kogi at 19.81 percent and Zamfara at 17.30 percent, while Abia at 13.26 percent, Delta at 13.20 percent and Kwara at 12.24 percent recorded the slowest rise in headline year on year inflation.

However, on a month on month basis, all items inflation was highest in Kogi at 3.08 percent, Bauchi at 2.33 percent and Oyo at 2.25 percent, while Rivers at 0.88 per cent, Akwa Ibom at 0.77 per cent and Nasarawa at 0.44 percent recorded the slowest rise in headline month on month inflation.

Less farm produce

“All items less farm produce” or core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce, stood at 11.05 percent in November down by 0.09 percent when compared with 11.14 percent recorded in October,” NBS said.

“On a month on month basis, the core sub-index increased by 0.71 percent in November representing a sharp 0.54 percentage point decrease when compared with 1.25 per cent recorded in October.

According to the report, the highest increases were recorded in prices of passenger transport by air, medical services, hospital services, repair of furniture, passenger transport by road, maintenance and repair of personal transport equipment, vehicle spare parts, hairdressing salons and personal grooming establishments, pharmaceutical products, paramedical services, and motor cars.

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It said the average 12-month annual rate of change of the index was 10.14 percent for the twelve-month period ending November representing a 0.18 percent points increase over 9.96 percent recorded in October.

Methodology

The NBS said CPI measures the average change over time in prices of goods and services consumed by people for day to day living.

It said the construction of the CPI combines economic theory, sampling, and other statistical techniques using data from other surveys to produce a weighted measure of average price changes in the Nigerian economy.

It said the weighted measure was used to capture the importance of the selected commodities in the entire index.

The survey methodology generates 3,774 all item indices for all states and FCT, NBS said in the report.