By: Tijani Salako.

The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has said Nigeria’s inflation outlook remains fragile despite signs of easing inflationary pressure in April 2026.

In a statement issued on Friday, the Chief Executive Officer of CPPE, Dr. Muda Yusuf, said the slight increase in headline inflation from 15.38 per cent in March to 15.69 per cent in April showed that inflationary pressures were still high, although the pace of increase had moderated.

According to him, month-on-month inflation indicators recorded improvements across major categories, suggesting a weakening in short-term inflationary momentum.

He noted that headline month-on-month inflation declined by 2.05 per cent, while food inflation eased by 0.54 per cent. Core inflation also declined by 3.0 per cent, urban inflation moderated by 1.3 per cent, and rural inflation dropped sharply by 3.9 per cent.

Dr. Yusuf, however, warned that inflation conditions remained severe for households and businesses, with food inflation standing at 16.06 per cent and core inflation at 15.86 per cent.

He identified food, transportation, energy products, healthcare and restaurant services as the major drivers of inflation, accounting for about 87 per cent of the inflationary pressure recorded in April.

“These are essential expenditure items which absorb the bulk of household income, particularly among low-income Nigerians,” he stated.

The CPPE boss also expressed concern over the impact of rising geopolitical tensions involving Iran, Israel and the United States, saying the development had heightened inflationary risks through renewed volatility in the global oil market.

According to him, the rise in crude oil prices is increasing domestic energy costs, including petrol, diesel and gas prices, thereby raising transportation, logistics and production costs across sectors.

He explained that the development was worsening food prices and overall consumer inflation, further exposing the structural and supply-side nature of Nigeria’s inflation challenge.

Dr. Yusuf argued that monetary tightening alone would not effectively address inflation driven by energy costs, logistics inefficiencies, food supply disruptions and poor infrastructure.

He warned that further tightening of monetary policy could increase financing costs for businesses, weaken investment and constrain productivity growth.

The CPPE therefore urged governments at federal and state levels to focus more on supply-side interventions aimed at reducing energy costs, improving transportation infrastructure, strengthening food supply systems, enhancing trade facilitation and supporting domestic productivity.

He further advised businesses to adopt energy-efficient strategies, dynamic pricing models and affordability-driven product approaches, including smaller pack sizes, to cope with weakening consumer purchasing power.

Yusuf added that although the April inflation figures indicated some moderation in inflationary momentum, the disinflation process remained highly vulnerable to external shocks, particularly developments in the global energy market.