Nigeria’s inflation rate rose further in March 2026, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) climbing to 135.4—up by 5.4 points from 130.0 recorded in February—highlighting sustained pressure on household spending.Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) shows that headline inflation increased to 15.38% in March, from 15.06% in February. On a month-on-month basis, inflation surged by 4.18%, indicating a faster pace of price increases across goods and services.

Food inflation, a key driver of overall price growth, also recorded an uptick. The rate stood at 14.31% in March, with a month-on-month increase of 4.17%, reflecting persistent cost pressures on essential food items and continued strain on consumer purchasing power. The inflationary trend comes amid recent changes to Nigeria’s CPI framework by the NBS, aimed at improving the accuracy and relevance of economic data.

As part of the update, the NBS rebased the CPI, replacing the previous reference period of 2009 with more current benchmarks that better reflect present-day economic realities. Rebasing aligns price and weight reference periods with current consumption patterns, offering a more accurate measure of inflation.

Under the revised framework, the weight reference period has been updated to 2023, while the price reference period (base year) is now set at 2024. The updated CPI basket now includes 934 product varieties, grouped into 13 divisions based on the COICOP 2018 classification system.

The new methodology also introduces a broader set of indices to enhance economic analysis. These include Urban and Rural National Indices, Headline Index, Food Index, Core Index, Imported Food Index, Goods Index, Services Index, Energy Index, All Items Less Farm Produce Index, and the Farm Produce Index. Analysts say the updated CPI framework, alongside rising inflation figures, will play a critical role in shaping Nigeria’s economic outlook in the coming months—particularly in areas such as interest rates, consumer spending, and the overall cost of living.