Nigeria’s inflation rate rose to 15.93% in May 2026, up from 15.69% in April, marking the third straight monthly increase, the NBS confirmed Monday.
Nigeria’s Inflation Rate Hits 15.93% for Third Straight Month
Prince Adeyemi Adeniran, Statistician-General of the Federation and Chief Executive Officer of the NBS, presented the Consumer Price Index report showing the rate climbed from 15.69 percent in April 2026. The figure is still well beneath where the country stood a year ago. On a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate reached 15.93 per cent, down sharply from 26.06 per cent recorded in May 2025. Three months running.
That pattern alone worried traders at the Wuse Market in Abuja when the report landed Monday morning. The latest Consumer Price Index report showed that inflation increased from 15.69 per cent in April to 15.93 per cent in May, extending a rebound that began in March after inflation fell slightly to 15.06 per cent in February. The Consumer Price Index itself increased to 140.7 in May from 138.3 in April, a 2.4-point rise reflecting sustained pressure on the cost of goods and services.
On a month-on-month basis, the pace slowed. The NBS stated, “In May 2026, the headline inflation rate on a month-on-month basis was 1.75 percent, which was 0.39 percent lower than the rate recorded in April 2026 (2.13 percent). This means that in May 2026, the rate of increase in the average price level was lower than the rate of increase in the average price level in April 2026.”
Food Inflation Remains a Key Driver of Nigeria’s Inflation Rate
The NBS reported that food inflation stood at 16.96 per cent year-on-year in May, compared with 24.55 per cent in the corresponding month of 2025. Still elevated. On a month-on-month basis, food inflation eased to 2.98 per cent from 3.63 per cent recorded in April.
The bureau attributed the increase in food prices to the rising cost of staples: onions, maize grains, melon, water yam, cassava flour, crayfish, fresh pepper, tomatoes, wheat grain, cassava tubers, yam tubers, sweet potatoes, ginger, plantain, and cowpea.
Adeniran’s written statement identified three major divisional contributors to headline inflation: food and non-alcoholic beverages at 6.38 per cent, restaurants and accommodation services at 2.06 per cent, and transport at 1.70 per cent. And the service number demands attention. Core inflation, which excludes farm produce and energy, stood at 16.82 per cent year-on-year, compared with 24.92 per cent in May 2025, but on a monthly basis core inflation accelerated sharply to 1.94 per cent from 1.03 per cent in April.
State-Level Gaps Widen Across Nigeria’s Inflation Picture
The national average concealed a dramatic spread across states. Yobe recorded the highest headline inflation rate on a year-on-year basis at 24.94 per cent, followed by Anambra at 23.29 per cent and Sokoto at 22.60 per cent. Niger recorded the lowest annual inflation rate at 3.07 per cent, followed by Plateau at 7.10 per cent and Edo at 7.73 per cent.
A 21-percentage-point gap. Between one state and another. Same country, same month. Adamawa recorded the highest annual food inflation rate at 29.62 per cent, followed by Kwara at 28.47 per cent and Rivers at 28.40 per cent. Borno recorded food deflation of 6.53 percent, while Taraba and Bayelsa recorded the slowest increases at 1.13 percent and 5.99 percent, respectively.
Urban and Rural Nigeria Feel the Pressure Differently
Urban inflation stood at 16.07 per cent year-on-year, while rural inflation came in at 15.60 per cent. On a month-on-month basis, the urban inflation rate was 1.99 per cent, which increased by 0.13 per cent compared to April at 1.86 per cent.
The average inflation for the 12 months ending May 2026 stood at 18.36 per cent, compared to 30.57 per cent in the corresponding period of 2025. The year-on-year relief is real. But with Nigeria’s headline inflation rate posting a third consecutive monthly gain through May 2026, analysts watching the NBS data say the direction of travel now carries as much weight as the level itself.
