Emefiele Predicts Rapid Drop In Food Prices

Godwin Emefiele, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria has expressed optimism that inflation rate will fall at a faster rate and hit single digit by mid-2018.

Speaking on the sidelines of an investment conference at the London Stock Exchange on Friday, the CBN governor was upbeat that prices of food will plummet to compliment the fall in core inflation.

Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics in its latest publication of the Consumer Price Index, showed that Nigeria’s annual inflation rate marginally slowed for an eighth month in September, easing to 15.98 percent.

This was 0.03 percent points lower than the rate recorded in August (16.01) percent making it the eighth consecutive decline in the rate of headline year on year inflation since January 2017.

However, the food price index showed a marginal rise in inflation at 20.32 percent in September, up from 20.25 percent in August.

“We are very optimistic that food prices will come down and as they come down, it will help to complement the reduction in core inflation,” Emefiele told journalists on Friday.

“I expected a more aggressive moderation.

“We are hoping that by the middle of next year we should begin to approach the high single digits,” he said, adding that around nine percent would be a good target.