Nigeria’s Inflation Rate Hits 15.15% in December 2025 as Food Prices Ease
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate stood at 15.15% in December 2025, according to data released today by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), marking a significant shift in the country’s economic landscape as food prices experienced an unexpected decline during the festive season.
The Statistician-General of the Federation, Prince Adeyemi Adeniran, announced the figures following a comprehensive rebasing exercise that transitioned the Consumer Price Index to a new 2024 base year, providing what officials say is a more accurate reflection of Nigerian consumers’ current reality.
The December report reveals a cooling in price pressures, with the month-on-month headline rate dropping from 1.22% in November to 0.54% in December. This deceleration has been largely attributed to a significant drop in food prices during the holiday period.
In a surprising development for the holiday season, food inflation recorded a month-on-month decline of negative 0.36%, representing a sharp reversal from the 1.13% increase recorded in November. The NBS attributed this deflationary trend to decreased average prices of essential staples including tomatoes, garri, potatoes, onions, carrots, eggs, millet, beans, and wheat grain.
However, on a year-on-year basis, food inflation remained at 10.84%. At the state level, disparities were evident, with Yobe recording the highest food inflation at 15.25%, while Akwa Ibom saw the slowest rise at 4.34%.
Read Also:
While food prices eased, core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural produce and energy, remained sticky at 18.63% on a year-on-year basis. The Bureau highlighted energy as a significant outlier, being the only sub-index to show a substantial increase of 2.74% during the month. In contrast, other indices such as farm produce and services saw declines or marginal growth.
The 15.15% headline figure was primarily driven by three key divisions: food and non-alcoholic beverages, which contributed 6.06%; restaurants and accommodation services, contributing 1.96%; and transport, which added 1.62%. Recreation, sport, and culture contributed the least to the inflationary basket at just 0.05%.
The report revealed divergent price movements between urban and rural areas. Urban inflation stood at 14.85% year-on-year, with a slight monthly rise to 0.99%. Rural inflation stood at 14.56% year-on-year, but the rural month-on-month rate fell to negative 0.55%, indicating that the drop in food prices had a more immediate impact in rural markets.
Inflationary pressure varied significantly across the federation. Abia recorded the highest year-on-year headline inflation at 19.03%, followed by Ogun at 18.80% and Katsina at 18.66%. On the other end, Sokoto recorded the lowest at 8.61%, followed by Plateau at 9.05% and Kaduna at 10.38%.
The NBS cautioned against direct interstate comparisons, noting that consumption patterns and the weight of items in the basket differ significantly from one state to another.
The Statistician-General emphasized that this new reporting framework, based on a 2023 weight reference period, provides a more accurate and modern reflection of the Nigerian consumer’s reality in 2026.
By PRNigeria
