Flood, petrol scarcity, public holidays to fuel inflation July – Rewane

Contrary to belief in some quarters, floods, petrol shortages and the numerous public holidays observed in June will see inflation rise to new high by the end of July.

“The month of June 2024 compared to the prior year was not a typical month as Nigeria suffered from high flood and petrol shortages. Moreover, there was an interesting coincidence of public holidays in June.

“The celebrations and activities pushed up demand for food products. The full effect of these developments will manifest in the July inflation figures which are expected to be higher than the June numbers”, said Bismarck Rewane, Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company (FDC) Limited.

He added that the major development to look out for in July is the imminent passing of a new minimum wage law. 

“From all indications, the effect of a new minimum wage will trigger cost-push inflation”, he said in a publication- Economic Splash made available to Blueprint.

NBS CPI report put Nigeria’s inflation rate at 34.19 per cent.

The major drivers of inflation at this time remains the food basket at 40.80 per cent. The items include the usual suspects like Millet, Garri, yam, groundnut oil, palm oil, etc.