December 15, (THEWILL) — Nigeria’s headline inflation rate declined for the eighth consecutive month in November 2025, easing to 14.45 per cent year-on-year, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released on Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The figure represents a further moderation from the 16.05 per cent recorded in October, signalling a gradual cooling of consumer price pressures after a prolonged period of elevated inflation.
On a year-on-year basis, inflation in November 2025 was 20.15 percentage points lower than the 34.60 per cent recorded in November 2024, underscoring the scale of the slowdown in price growth over the past year. Inflation had peaked close to 35 per cent late last year before adjustments to the CPI base year.
However, on a month-on-month basis, headline inflation rose slightly to 1.22 per cent in November from 0.93 per cent in October, indicating that prices continued to increase within the month, albeit at a slower annual pace.
The report showed that urban inflation fell sharply to 13.61 per cent year-on-year in November 2025, down by 23.49 percentage points from 37.10 per cent in November 2024.
Month-on-month, urban inflation eased to 0.95 per cent from 1.14 per cent in October, while the 12-month average declined to 20.80 per cent from 35.07 per cent a year earlier.
In rural areas, inflation stood at 15.15 per cent year-on-year in November, 17.12 percentage points lower than the 32.27 per cent recorded in the same month last year. Month-on-month, rural inflation accelerated to 1.88 per cent from 0.45 per cent in October, while the 12-month average moderated to 19.46 per cent from 30.71 per cent in November 2024.
Food inflation, a major driver of headline inflation, also slowed significantly. The food inflation rate eased to 11.08 per cent year-on-year in November 2025, down from 39.93 per cent in November 2024, largely reflecting the effect of the revised base year.
On a month-on-month basis, food inflation rose to 1.13 per cent from a contraction of 0.37 per cent in October, driven by higher prices of items such as dried tomatoes, cassava tubers, shelled periwinkle, ground pepper, eggs, crayfish, egusi melon, oxtail and fresh onions.
The 12-month average food inflation rate declined to 19.68 per cent from 38.67 per cent a year earlier.
Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce and energy, stood at 18.04 per cent year-on-year in November 2025, compared with 28.75 per cent in November 2024.
Month-on-month, core inflation eased to 1.28 per cent from 1.42 per cent in October, while the 12-month average declined to 20.76 per cent from 26.64 per cent a year earlier.
Economists attribute the moderation in inflation to improved food supply conditions, easing pressures in core price components and a strong base effect from last year, though they note that the cost of living remains high for many households.
While the easing trend is encouraging, inflation at 14.45 per cent remains above the Central Bank of Nigeria’s preferred single-digit target, underscoring the need for sustained policy efforts focused on demand management, food supply chain efficiency and exchange rate stability.
Ogochukwu Onwaeze
