The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has announced that the average retail price of Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) in Nigeria has risen to ₦937 per litre in the Northern region in May 2024.
According to NBS’s state profile analysis, Jigawa State had the highest petrol price of ₦937.50, indicating a continuous rise in the commodity since President Bola Tinubu removed petrol subsidies on May 29, 2023.
NBS added that the average price paid for petrol was ₦769.62, indicating a 223.21 per cent increase compared to the value recorded in May 2023 (N238.11).
In comparison to the previous month (April 2024), the average retail price increased by 9.75 percent from ₦701.24.
On state profile analysis, Jigawa State had the highest average retail price for the commodity at ₦937.50, Ondo and Benue States were next, with ₦882.67 and N882.22, respectively.
Lagos, Niger and Kwara States had the lowest average retail prices, at ₦636.80, ₦642.16 and ₦645.15, respectively.
The North-West Zone had the highest average retail price of ₦845.26, while the North Central Zone had the lowest at ₦695.04.
Following the removal of petrol subsidies, the inflation rate rose to as high as 33.95 per cent as of May, according to NBS, with food inflation as high as 40 per cent.
The NBS’s latest release on pump prices heading towards ₦1,000 per litre in the North comes on the heels of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), which said that it would not increase petrol prices in its retail outlets across the country.
The company currently sells at around ₦568 per litre at its retail outlets, up from around ₦238 as of May 2023, according to NBS.
