Nigeria’s inflation rate moderated in January 2026, offering a small but important relief to households and businesses. According to the latest Consumer Price Index report released in Abuja by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the country’s headline inflation stood at 15.10 per cent in January.
This represents a slight decrease from the 15.15% recorded in December 2025. On a year-on-year basis, inflation dropped sharply by 12.51 percentage points compared to 27.61 per cent recorded in January 2025, showing a significant improvement in price stability over the past year.
On a monthly basis, inflation declined by -2.88% in January. which was 3.42% lower than the 0.54% recorded in December, indicating that the general price level increased at a slower pace compared to the previous month.
The Consumer Price Index also fell to 127.4 in January from 131.2 in December, reflecting a 3.8-point decline.
Food Inflation Declines Sharply
Food prices played a major role in the easing of inflation. The food inflation rate stood at 8.89 per cent year-on-year in January, which is 20.73 percentage points lower than the 29.63 per cent recorded in January 2025.
On a monthly basis, food inflation dropped by 6.02 per cent, compared to a decline of 0.36 per cent in December. The NBS attributed the reduction to falling prices of key food items such as water yam, eggs, green peas, groundnut oil, soya beans, palm oil, maize, guinea corn, beans, beef, melon, cassava and cowpeas.
Despite the decline, food and non-alcoholic beverages remained the biggest contributors to headline inflation on a year-on-year basis, accounting for 6.04 per cent. Restaurants and accommodation services followed at 1.95 per cent, while transport contributed 1.61 per cent.
Core Inflation Moderates
Core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural produce and energy prices, stood at 17.72 per cent year-on-year in January 2026. This is a significant decline from 25.27 per cent recorded in January 2025.
On a month-on-month basis, core inflation fell by 1.69 per cent, compared to a 0.58 per cent increase in December. The data suggests that underlying price pressures are gradually easing.
The inflation sub-indices also showed improvement. Energy prices recorded a negative rate of 3.13 per cent, while farm produce declined by 5.10 per cent. Goods inflation fell by 4.63 per cent, imported food dropped by 6.81 per cent, and services recorded a mild increase of 0.48 per cent.
Urban and Rural Inflation Show Improvement
Inflation slowed in both urban and rural areas. Urban inflation stood at 15.36 per cent year-on-year in January, significantly lower than the 29.45 per cent recorded in January 2025. On a month-on-month basis, urban inflation declined by 2.72 per cent.
Rural inflation was recorded at 14.44 per cent year-on-year, down from 25.04 per cent a year earlier. On a monthly basis, rural inflation dropped by 3.29 per cent, reflecting stronger price moderation in rural communities.
State-by-State Inflation Performance
The NBS report showed variations across states. On a year-on-year basis, Benue recorded the highest headline inflation rate at 22.48 per cent, followed by Kogi at 20.98 per cent and Abuja at 19.25 per cent.
Ebonyi recorded the lowest year-on-year inflation at 8.72 per cent, followed by Katsina at 8.94 per cent and Imo at 10.61 per cent.
On a month-on-month basis, Imo and Ondo recorded the highest inflation increase at 1.93 per cent, while Kaduna posted 0.67 per cent. Meanwhile, Cross River, Ogun, Kogi and Plateau recorded declines in monthly inflation.
Food inflation also varied across states. Kogi, Benue and Adamawa recorded the highest year-on-year food inflation rates, while Ebonyi, Abia and Imo posted the slowest increases.
What This Means for Nigeria’s Economy
The decline in Nigeria’s inflation rate in January 2026 signals improving price stability and easing cost pressures, especially in food prices. While inflation remains above desired levels, the sharp year-on-year drop suggests that economic conditions are gradually stabilizing.
If food prices continue to moderate and external pressures remain controlled, Nigeria could see further improvements in inflation in the coming months. The January data provides cautious optimism for consumers, businesses and policymakers seeking sustainable economic recovery.
