Following the release of the recent Consumer Price Index (CPI) data by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the Lagos State Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has expressed concerns that there may be a consistent increase in inflationary pressures in the near term as the report showed an increase from 22.22 recorded in April to 22.41 percent in May, an increase of 0.19 percentage points for the fifth consecutive month.
In a statement released to the Press, the director general LCCI Dr. Chinyere Almona expressed concerns that fuel subsidy removal and the floating of the Naira exchange rate will come with its inflationary impact.
According to the report, food inflation rate increased by 0.21 percentage points to 24.82 percent, from 24.61 percent the previous month. Core inflation reduced slightly by 0.08 percentage points to 20.06 percent in May from 20.14 percent in April and 14.90 percent in May 2022.
‘’We anticipate businesses will implement a variety of cost reduction strategies, including downsizing and local sourcing of input factors as they bid to lower operating expenses. Also, household real income will continue to experience a decline, especially in the near term.’’
‘’We also urge the government to implement fiscal measures such as reducing/ removing the tax on basic food items to protect the most vulnerable as well as spur demand-side growth. We implore the government to hasten the provision of the anticipated palliatives in order to lessen the impact of the rising trend in prices on economic agents.’’
Data revealed that food and non-alcoholic beverages, housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuel, clothing, footwear and transport were the major contributors to the acceleration in headline inflation.
