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UPDATE 1-Nigerian annual inflation edges up to 12.20% in February

Published 17/03/2020, 09:17

(Adds details)
LAGOS, March 17 (Reuters) - Annual inflation in Nigeria rose
for the sixth straight month to a near two-year high, the
statistics office said on Tuesday, as the impact of the
country's closed borders continued to be felt.
Inflation stood at 12.20% in February, compared with 12.13%
in the previous month. It is the highest inflation rate since
April 2018, when it stood at 12.48%.
A separate food price index showed inflation at 14.90% in
February, compared with 14.85% in January.
"This rise in the food index was caused by increases in
prices of bread and cereals, fish, meat, vegetables, and oils
and fats," the National Bureau of Statistics said in its report.
Nigeria closed parts of its borders in August to fight
smuggling of rice and other goods. Economists say the move has
driven inflation as local food producers have struggled to meet
demand for food in the country of around 200 million people,
Africa's most populous.
The central bank monetary policy committee will meet next
week to set its benchmark interest rate. It had said it expected
to keep monetary policy tight in 2020 to combat inflation and
support the currency amidst slow growth of around 2%.
But Nigeria, Africa's biggest economy and top oil producer,
has been hit hard by low oil prices and the impact of the
coronavirus outbreak on China, with which it has close trade
ties.

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