National Bureau of Statistics has released the Consumer Price Index for January which stated that increase in the prices of non-food items such as electricity, gas and other fuels had pushed inflation up by 8.2 per cent.
The report also stated that 8.2 per cent year on year rise represented a 0.2 percentage point increase over the eight per cent recorded in December 2014.
The report read, “In January, the Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation, rose by 8.2 per cent (year-on-year), 0.2 percentage points from 8.0 per cent recorded in December.
“All major divisions that contribute to the index increased during the period. Food prices measured by the food sub-index held at roughly the same pace of increase in January as in December, while on the aggregate, upward pressure on the headline index was largely as a result of increasing divisions that contribute to the core sub-index.
“Most groups that contribute to the food sub-index increased at a faster pace during the month. This was countered however by slower rises in the fish, fruit, coffee, tea, cocoa and soft drinks groups.”
The report stated that the Urban Index increased by 0.3 percentage points to 8.2 per cent in January while rural prices increased marginally from eight per cent in December to 8.1 per cent in January.
According to the report, on a month-on-month basis, both the urban and rural indices recorded the same pace of increase in January.
As at November last year, inflation rate was around 7.9 per cent. Following the devaluation of the naira, economic analysts predicted that inflation rate increase.