Nigeria's inflation rate rises to 15.38 percent in March 2026, driven by food and transport costs
via Punch Nigeria3 min read
Nigeria's inflation rate increased to 15.38 percent in March 2026, reversing a recent easing trend, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. This marks the first rise in headline inflation since March 2025, up from 15.06 percent in February 2026. The Consumer Price Index rose to 135.4 points in March from 130.0 in February. Month-on-month inflation accelerated to 4.18 percent, a significant increase from 2.01 percent in February 2026. Food and non-alcoholic beverages were the largest contributors to inflation, accounting for 5.55 percentage points, followed by restaurants and accommodation services at 3.26 percentage points, and transport at 1.80 percentage points. Rural inflation, at 17.22 percent year-on-year, was higher than urban inflation, which stood at 14.64 percent. Monthly rural inflation surged to 6.73 percent from 0.71 percent in February. Food inflation was 14.31 percent year-on-year in March 2026, up from 12.12 percent in February 2026, with staple items like yams, cassava, tomatoes, and potatoes seeing persistent price increases. Core inflation, excluding volatile items, rose to 16.21 percent year-on-year. The average inflation rate for the 12 months ending March 2026 was 20.05 percent. Bayelsa recorded the highest year-on-year inflation at 27.37 percent, while Osun had the slowest rise at 5.25 percent. The World Bank previously warned that rising global oil prices could add approximately 3.1 percentage points to Nigeria's headline inflation.
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