Highlights 

• The food inflation index increased to 30.64% in September 2023 from 29.34% in August 2023 with a difference of 1.3% due to increase in the prices of some food items1 . Compared to the parallel market rate of ₦920/$1 for the previous month, the Naira depreciated by 9.6% on the parallel market to close at ₦1008/$1 on the 30th of September. This brings the total year-on-year (Sep 2022 to Sep 2023) depreciation of the Naira to 35%.
• Between August and September, the value of 70% of the cost of Survival Minimum Expenditure Basket (SMEB) for a family of five increased by 7% from 38,345 naira to 41,187 naira in Maiduguri and Jere in Borno State. The September value of 70% of the cost of SMEB for a family of five in Damaturu represents an increase of 20% when compared to three months ago. Please refer to Table 3 for the SMEB values in other LGAs of the BAY states.
• In September, petroleum pump prices were seen to still be on the rise across various outlets in the country. In comparison to the previous month, Yunusari LGA in Yobe state observed a 39% increase in fuel prices, followed closely by Gwoza LGA (32%) in Borno state. Fuel prices are highest in Monguno LGA with an average of 1067 naira per litre, while the lowest price was observed in Potiskum LGA in Yobe State with an average of 620 naira/litre in September. Please refer to Table 5 for fuel prices in other LGAs of the BAY states.
• The SMEB, therefore, continue to increase with the sustained rise in staple food prices compared to the previous month. Reduced market availability of staple food items (due to seasonal trends) and increase in transportation cost has brought about increased prices of these staples.