The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has published figures indicating that petrol prices soared in the month of August. Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, increased in price from N770.54 recorded in July to N830.46.
This 7.78% increase follows the month after the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) accepted that it has a subsidy debt of $6 billion.
NNPC’s spokesman, Olufemi Soneye, noted that the corporation’s indebtedness is jeopardizing the continuation of the supply of fuel.
The NBS data showed that petrol prices differ across states, with Benue presenting the highest average retail price at N941.24, followed by Bauchi and Gombe at N935.71 and N925.00 respectively. The highest average retail prices were in Delta, Cross River and Edo with respective prices of N667.50, N672.00, and N676.25.
In the zonal analysis, the North-East Zone was found to have the highest average retail price of N908.21 while the South-South Zone had the least at N677.11.
The rise in the prices of petrol is expected to have a direct effect on the consumers and businesses leading to increase in the food items and other essential goods, and ultimately contributing to higher inflation.
