Nigeria’s inflation rate rose further in April 2026 as increases in food prices, transportation fares, healthcare expenses and hospitality costs continued to squeeze household incomes across the country.
Latest figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Friday showed that headline inflation climbed to 15.69 per cent in April, up from 15.38 per cent recorded in March.
The bureau disclosed this in its Consumer Price Index report, noting that consumer prices maintained an upward trend despite a slowdown in the pace of monthly inflation growth.
According to the report, “In April 2026, the headline inflation rate rose to 15.69 per cent, up from 15.38 per cent in March 2026 and stood at 26.82 per cent in the same month of the preceding year.”
The NBS said the Consumer Price Index rose to 138.3 points in April from 135.4 points recorded in March, reflecting continued increases in the cost of goods and services nationwide.
Although inflation rose on a yearly basis, the report showed that monthly price growth moderated during the period. Month-on-month inflation slowed to 2.13 per cent in April from 4.18 per cent recorded in March.
The bureau explained that the development indicated that while prices were still rising, the speed of increase had eased compared to the previous month.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages remained the biggest drivers of inflation, contributing 6.40 percentage points to the headline figure.
Restaurants and accommodation services accounted for 3.56 percentage points, while transport contributed 1.70 percentage points amid continued pressure from high transportation costs.
Healthcare costs also pushed inflation higher, contributing 1.21 percentage points, followed by housing, electricity, gas and other fuels at 0.77 percentage points.
Other contributors included personal care and miscellaneous goods, education services, clothing and footwear, as well as information and communication services.
The report showed that urban inflation stood at 15.40 per cent year-on-year in April, while rural inflation was higher at 16.36 per cent, reflecting stronger price pressures in rural communities.
Food inflation also remained elevated.
The NBS said food inflation rose to 16.06 per cent year-on-year in April, driven by increases in the prices of staple food items including millet, yam flour, fresh pepper, garri, beef, tomatoes, beans, cassava, soybeans, plantain and Irish potatoes.
However, on a monthly basis, food inflation eased slightly to 3.63 per cent from 4.17 per cent in March.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural produce and energy prices, stood at 15.86 per cent year-on-year, while monthly core inflation slowed sharply to 1.03 per cent from 4.03 per cent in March.
The report further showed that farm produce inflation rose by 19.8 per cent year-on-year, while energy inflation recorded an annual increase of 4.6 per cent and an eight per cent rise month-on-month.
Services inflation stood at 16.7 per cent year-on-year, while goods inflation was recorded at 15.7 per cent.
Across states, Sokoto State recorded the highest year-on-year inflation rate at 25.74 per cent, followed by Bauchi State at 22.52 per cent and Zamfara State at 22.03 per cent.
On the other hand, Edo State recorded the slowest rise in inflation at 5.91 per cent, followed by Borno State and Jigawa State.
For food inflation, Enugu State posted the highest year-on-year increase at 32.67 per cent, ahead of Kwara State and Adamawa State.
The inflation figure released by the NBS came in lower than the 16.42 per cent projection earlier made by the Financial Market Dealers Association, which had warned that rising food and energy costs would continue to sustain pressure on consumer prices.
Despite the slightly lower-than-expected figure, analysts say persistent increases in food, transport and energy costs remain major concerns for households and businesses already grappling with weak purchasing power and rising living expenses.