The inflation rate in Nigeria climbed for the second consecutive month in October, reaching 33.88% compared to 32.70% in September 2024, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday in Abuja.

This surge comes despite the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) raising interest rates five times this year in a bid to curb inflation. The bank is set to hold another rate-setting meeting later this month to address the persistent economic challenges.

Inflation pressures intensified in the latter half of 2023 following President Bola Tinubu’s decision to devalue the naira and remove fuel subsidies, measures aimed at boosting economic growth and strengthening public finances.

While inflation began to ease in mid-2024 as the effects of naira devaluation subsided, successive petrol price hikes have reignited inflationary pressures, deepening Nigeria’s worst cost-of-living crisis in decades.