Inflation remained above 30% in 19 states and the Federal Capital Territory in June 2026 despite a marginal decline in Nigeria’s national headline rate.
According to The Punch, an analysis of the latest Consumer Price Index report from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that 20 of Nigeria’s 37 sub-national entities recorded annual all-items inflation above 30%.
The figure represents 54.1% of the states and the FCT, highlighting the continued pressure on household finances despite the easing of the national inflation rate.
National headline inflation declined slightly to 15.91% in June from 15.93% in May. However, food prices increased at a faster pace during the month.
Niger, Kogi record highest rates
Niger recorded the highest year-on-year headline inflation at 42.23%, followed by Kogi at 41.59% and the FCT at 39.91%.
Other states with inflation above 30% included Kwara at 36.52%, Plateau at 35.82%, Sokoto at 35.22% and Benue at 35.06%.
Osun recorded 34.46%, Yobe 34.40%, Kebbi 34.07%, Enugu 34%, Bauchi 33.68% and Gombe 33.51%.
The rate stood at 32.81% in Oyo, 32.28% in Lagos, 31.85% in Akwa Ibom, 31.82% in Adamawa, 31% in Ekiti, 30.54% in Taraba and 30.28% in Abia.
Meanwhile, Imo recorded the country’s lowest state-level annual inflation rate at 19.47%.
Despite being the lowest, Imo’s rate remained 3.56 percentage points above the national headline inflation figure.
Ebonyi recorded 20.79%, followed by Katsina at 21.87%, Rivers at 23.73%, Zamfara at 24% and Kaduna at 24.71%.
Other states below 30% included Edo, Cross River, Delta, Borno, Kano, Anambra, Ondo, Ogun, Jigawa, Nasarawa and Bayelsa.
The NBS cautioned that the figures should not be used for direct price comparisons between states because consumption patterns and the weights assigned to goods and services differ across locations.
Food inflation remains major concern
Food inflation remained particularly high in several parts of the country, worsening the pressure on families already struggling with the cost of essential goods.
Kogi recorded the highest annual food inflation rate at 53.02%, followed by Niger at 43.83% and Benue at 40.83%.
Food inflation in the FCT stood at 40.20%, while Adamawa recorded 39.61%, Osun 39.56% and Kwara 39%.
Kebbi, Sokoto, Plateau, Yobe, Enugu, Gombe, Kaduna, Bayelsa, Jigawa, Ekiti and Akwa Ibom also recorded food inflation above 30%.
Others in the category included Edo, Bauchi, Zamfara, Delta, Nasarawa, Cross River and Oyo.
Katsina recorded the lowest annual food inflation rate at 19.15%, followed by Rivers at 23.81% and Imo at 24.60%.
Nationally, food inflation stood at 17.52% year-on-year in June, compared with 25.41% in the corresponding period of 2025.
However, month-on-month food inflation accelerated to 3.75% from 2.98% in May.
The NBS attributed the monthly increase to rising prices of fresh pepper, tomatoes, crayfish, beef, garri, yam, banana, cassava flour, cowpea and Irish potatoes, among other food items.
States record contrasting monthly movements
The state-level figures showed significant differences in monthly price movements.
Niger recorded the highest month-on-month headline inflation at 11.65%, followed by Katsina at 8.13%, Kwara at 7.52% and Gombe at 7.09%.
Kebbi recorded 6.99%, Plateau 6.53% and Lagos 6.37%.
However, some states experienced monthly declines.
Bayelsa recorded the largest decline at -6.48%, followed by Benue at -5.58%, Cross River at -5.12%, Borno at -4.37% and Anambra at -4.17%.
For food inflation, Katsina recorded the highest monthly increase at 16.82%, ahead of Kebbi at 9.79% and Niger at 8.96%.
Borno, Benue and Bayelsa recorded monthly declines in food inflation.
Economist warns of structural pressures
Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Muda Yusuf, said the figures showed broad stability in headline inflation but warned that the renewed rise in food prices remained a major concern.
“The dominant concern in the report is the renewed acceleration in food inflation,” Yusuf said.
“Year-on-year food inflation increased from 17.43% to 17.52%, while month-on-month food inflation rose sharply from 2.98% to 3.75%, the strongest monthly increase in several months.
“This suggests that food prices have resumed an upward trajectory after a brief period of moderation.”
He said high food prices continued to weaken household purchasing power, worsen food insecurity and reduce the benefits of economic reforms for vulnerable Nigerians.
Yusuf identified insecurity, transportation and logistics expenses, energy prices, fertiliser costs, supply-chain disruptions and imported inflation as major causes of the persistent pressure.
He argued that the latest figures did not support further monetary tightening by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Instead, he called for coordinated reforms to increase food production, improve transportation, reduce energy and production costs, expand domestic petroleum refining and strengthen productivity.
