The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported a significant surge in the average retail price of a liter of petrol in Nigeria, as revealed in its recently released Petrol Price Watch for September 2023 in Abuja.
According to the NBS, the average retail price of a liter of petrol soared from N191.65 in September 2022 to N626.21 in September 2023.
This dramatic increase represents a staggering 226.75 percent rise compared to the price recorded in September of the previous year.
The report further indicates that when compared to the preceding month, August 2023, the average retail price of petrol experienced a slight 0.08 percent increase from N626.70.
On a state-by-state analysis, Taraba emerged as the state with the highest average retail price for a liter of petrol, reaching N665.56.
It was followed closely by Borno and Benue, which recorded prices of N657.37 and N641.29, respectively.
In contrast, Rivers, Delta, and Jigawa had the lowest average retail prices, with figures of N602.55, N605.88, and N617.42, respectively.
The report also highlighted regional differences, indicating that the North-East had the highest average retail price in September 2023, standing at N638.33, while the South-South recorded the lowest, with a price of N618.47 per liter.
In a related development, the NBS released its Diesel Price Watch Report for September 2023, revealing that the average retail price of diesel in the country was N890.80 per liter.
This represented a 12.77 percent increase from the N789.90 per liter observed in September 2022.
On a month-to-month basis, the price of diesel increased by 4.27 percent from the N854.32 per liter recorded in August 2023.
The state-specific analysis for diesel prices indicated that Kano had the highest average price in September 2023 at N967.78 per liter, closely followed by Anambra at N950.95 per liter and Niger at N950.55 per liter.
On the other end of the spectrum, Bayelsa recorded the lowest price at N840.16 per liter, with Katsina and Rivers following suit at N840.55 and N840.82 per liter, respectively.
Analyzing diesel prices by regions, the South-East had the highest price at N918.06 per liter, while the South-South region posted the lowest price at N863.97 per liter.