Abuja – Figures released on Sunday in Abuja by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), showed that the nation's inflation rate for the month of August declined by 1.1 per cent.
The inflation rate for July was 11.7 per cent while that of August stood at 12.8 per cent.
The figures are contained in a statement issued by Dr Yemi Kale, the Statistician-General of the Federation.
It said that the monthly change in the composite Consumer Price Index (CPI) was due to the relative "slower rises'' in both the food and "core" indices, partly as a result of aggressive monetary policy initiatives of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
"It is also based on a much lower rise in several food prices, such as yams, tubers and vegetables due to the harvest season.
"In particular, the food index exhibited a sharp increase in August 2011. The implication is that year-on-year changes in August this year were muted due to higher prices in August of the previous year.
" In August this year, most classes under the food index increased, but again, only in relative moderation,'' it said.
The statement said that the all-items index was made up of the core index and farm produce items, while food index was made up of farm produce items.
"As processed foods are included in both the core and food sub-indices, this implies that these sub-indices are not mutually-exclusive.
"On a monthly basis, the composite CPI was higher by 0.67 per cent when compared with July 2012,'' it said.
The urban inflation rate stood at 14.4 per cent in August as against 15.6 per cent recorded in July.
The statement said that the rural inflation rate was 9.7 per cent for August, while the July figure stood at 10.7 per cent.
"The urban all items index increased by 0.69 per cent month-on-month, while the corresponding rural index increased by 0.66 per cent, when compared with the preceding month.
"The percentage change in the average composite CPI for the twelve-month period ending in August 2012 over the average of the CPI for the previous twelve-month period was 11.8 per cent.
"The corresponding 12-month year-on-year average percentage change for urban and rural indices was 12.4 per cent and 11. 4 per cent, respectively.''
The statement said that the composite food index increased year-on-year by 9.9 per cent to 135.9 points in August, down from 12.1 per cent in July.
"On a year-on-year basis, the relative moderation of food prices over the month of August could be attributable to a significant base effect.
"During the same period last year, the food index increased sharply by 2.7 per cent partially as a result of higher fish and tuber prices, as well as fruits due to the fasting period.
"As this was rather uncommon, the year-on-year percentage change in August 2012 reflects a lower year-on-year estimated due to the sharp increase in August 2011.''
The statement stated that the food index was also higher than the levels recorded in July of this year by 0.7 per cent.
"The appreciation in the food index was largely across all major classes, led by higher prices in fish, oils and fats and meats.
"The increase in the food sub-index were also partially driven by increase in imported foods prices,''
The statement said that the "All items less Farm Produce" index which excluded the prices of volatile agricultural products rose by 14.7 per cent year-on-year in August, compared to 15 per cent in July.
"On month-on-month basis, the core index increased by 0.6 per cent during the same period.
"The rise in the core index is partly attributable to higher prices of clothing materials, medical services, hotel and restaurant prices, and accommodation services, among others.
"The average 12 months annual rate of rise of the index was 13.3 per cent for the twelve-month period ending August. ''
According to the bureau, pricing and weighting are the two basic parameters used to arrive at the CPI.
It added that 10,534 officers were used to collate the data for the CPI monthly, while 740 product specifications were priced across the rural and urban areas of the 36 states of the federation and the FCT.
The statement said that the average price of each item was computed for each sector for each state and the FCT and used for index computation. (NAN)
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