LAGOS, Jan 16 – Nigeria’s headline inflation fell to 15.15% in December 2025 after a revision to the country’s Consumer Price Index methodology, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics.
The CPI rose to 131.2 points in December from 130.5 in November, reflecting a slower pace of price increases across the economy. On a year on year basis, inflation declined from 17.33% in November and was significantly lower than the 34.80% recorded in December 2024.
The statistics agency said the sharp slowdown largely reflects a rebasing of the CPI framework. Under the revised approach, year on year inflation is now calculated using a twelve month index reference period, with the 2024 average CPI set to 100. The bureau said this adjustment prevents artificial base effects that would otherwise distort inflation readings.
The change aligns Nigeria’s inflation methodology with international standards under the IMF Consumer Price Index Manual and the ECOWAS harmonised CPI framework. As part of the rebasing exercise, November inflation was revised upward to 17.33% from an earlier estimate of 14.45%.
On a month on month basis, headline inflation moderated to 0.54% in December from 1.22% in November, pointing to easing short term price pressures.
Food inflation recorded one of the most pronounced improvements, slowing to 10.84% year on year from 39.84% in December 2024. Monthly food prices declined by 0.36%, reversing the previous month’s increase. The NBS attributed the drop to lower prices of staples including tomatoes, garri, eggs, grains, vegetables, beans, and fresh onions. The twelve month average food inflation rate stood at 22.00%.
Core inflation, which excludes farm produce and energy, eased to 18.63% year on year from 29.28% a year earlier. Month on month core inflation slowed to 0.58%, while the twelve month average remained elevated at 23.49%.
Urban inflation declined to 14.85% year on year, while rural inflation eased to 14.56%. At the state level, Abia recorded the highest annual inflation rate at 19.03%, followed by Ogun and Katsina, while Sokoto posted the lowest at 8.61%.
The bureau cautioned that differences in consumption patterns and CPI weights limit direct comparisons across states. Despite the slowdown, the twelve month average inflation rate remained high at 23.01%, underscoring the cumulative impact of price increases over the past year even as headline pressures ease.
