Nigeria’s annual inflation rate dropped to 14.63 per cent in September from 15.39 per cent in August 2026, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Thursday.
“In September 2026, the headline inflation rate stood at 14.63 per cent, down from 15.39 per cent in August 2026 and stood at 20.98 per cent in the same month of the preceding year (September 2025),” the NBS said.
The bureau said the September 2026 headline inflation rate showed a decrease of 6.35 per cent compared to the September 2025 (20.98 per cent) headline inflation rate.
Inflation indicators compare prices of goods and services over 12 months. A decline does not necessarily imply a reduction in prices; instead, it shows the rate of price increase had fallen compared to previous months.
On a month-on-month basis, the statistics office said the headline inflation rate in September 2026 was 0.06 per cent, which was 0.65 per cent lower than the rate recorded in August 2026 (0.71 per cent).
“This means that in September 2026, the rate of increase in the average price level was lower than the rate of increase in the average price level in August 2026,” it said.
The NBS said the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased to (146.38) in September 2026, reflecting a 0.08-point increase from the preceding month (146.30).
“The percentage change in the average CPI for the twelve months ending September 2026 over the average for the previous twelve-month period was 15.80 per cent, showing a 11.51 per cent decrease compared to 27.31 per cent recorded in September 2025,” it said.
Urban inflation
On a year-on-year basis, the NBS said in September 2026, the Urban inflation rate was 15.64 per cent.
It added that on a month-on-month basis, the Urban inflation rate was 0.53 per cent in September 2026, up by 0.25 per cent compared to August 2026 (0.28 per cent).
It explained that the corresponding twelve-month average for the Urban inflation rate was 15.90 per cent in September 2026. This was 12.58 percentage points lower compared to the 28.48 per cent reported in September 2025.
Rural inflation
The bureau said the Rural inflation rate in September 2026 was 12.46 per cent on a year-on-year basis. On a month-on-month basis, the Rural inflation rate in September 2026 was -0.89 per cent, down by 2.68 per cent compared to August 2026 (1.79 per cent).
It said the corresponding twelve-month average for the Rural inflation rate in September 2026 was 15.32 per cent.
“This was 10.35 percentage points lower compared to the 25.67 per cent recorded in September 2025.”
Food inflation
The NBS said the Food inflation rate in September 2026 was 19.59 per cent on a year-on-year basis and stood at 20.16 per cent in the same month of the preceding year (September 2025).
It said that, on a month-on-month basis, the Food inflation rate in September 2026 was -1.55 per cent, down by 2.57 percentage points from August 2026 (1.02 per cent).
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“This can be attributed to the rate of change in the average prices of the following products: Guinea corn flour, sold loose, Maize (Corn) Flour White (sold loose), Rice Local, short-Grained, Egg, Onion Fresh, Palm oil, Green Beans Fresh, Irish Potatoes, Okra, Tomatoes Fresh, Green Peas (Dried), Plantain etc,” it said.
It added that the average annual rate of Food inflation for the twelve months ending September 2026 over the previous twelve-month average was 15.72 per cent, which was 12.66 percentage points lower compared with the average annual rate of change recorded in September 2025 (28.37 per cent).
Core inflation
According to the bureau, the “All items less farm produce and energy” or Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce and energy, stood at 12.95 per cent in September 2026 on a year-on-year basis; declined by 9.16 per cent when compared to the 22.11 per cent recorded in September 2025.
On a month-on-month basis, it said the Core Inflation rate was 1.11 per cent in September 2026, up by 1.17 per cent compared to August 2026 (-0.06 per cent).
“The average twelve-month annual inflation rate was 16.54 per cent for the twelve months ending September 2026, which was 9.13 percentage points lower than the 25.68 per cent recorded in September 2025,” the bureau said.
