Latest reports by the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, have disclosed that the price of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS (petrol) has maintained an upward trajectory since the removal of fuel subsidy in 2023, leading to the product being purchased for as high as ₦937 per litre as of May 2024.
According to the report titled ‘Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) Price Watch (May 2024)’ and shared on a state profile analysis, the average retail price paid by consumers for Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) in May 2024, increased astronomically from ₦769.62 to about ₦937 per litre in the Northern part of the country, indicating a 223.21 per cent increase compared to the value recorded in May 2023 (N238.11).
The report also revealed that consumers in Jigawa State paid the highest price of ₦937.50 for petrol adding that the hike signalled a continuous rise in the price of the commodity.
President Bola Tinubu had on May 29, 2023, announced the removal of petrol subsidy citing a necessity for Nigeria not to go bankrupt and to avert financial crisis. This however, resulted in high prices which rose to as high as 33.95 per cent as of May, according to NBS, with food inflation as high as 40 per cent and long queues at petrol stations across the nation.
Likewise, comparing the average price value with the previous month (i.e. April 2024), the average retail price increased by 9.75 per cent from ₦701.24 while 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.
On the other side, Lagos, Niger and Kwara States had the lowest average retail prices, at ₦636.80, ₦642.16 and ₦645.15 respectively.
Lastly, on the Zonal profile, the North-West Zone had the highest average retail price of ₦845.26, while the North Central Zone had the lowest price of ₦695.04.
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), saying that it would not increase petrol prices in its retail outlets across the country.
According to NBS, the company currently, sells at around ₦568 per litre at its retail outlets, from around ₦238 as of May 2023.
Reacting to the development, some respondents who spoke to Xclusiveloaded News in Makurdi, the Benue state capital, lamented the continuous inflation in cost of petrol and other commodities stating that each affects the other.
Terseer Tiseer, an Okada rider said the current price of petrol in the state has made business exremely difficult for him and other transport service operators as passengers are not willing to pay their current charges which was influenced by the current price of petrol.
He noted that most okada riders barely make as much profits as they used to do before the inflation while stating that if passengers would understand with them on their situation, it would be more beneficial.
Mama Tabbitha, a vegetables seller at the High-Level market in Makurdi who spoke in Tiv, lamented low sales as a result of the hike in price of commodities which she attributed to the hike in price of petrol.
She said due to low patronage, even the sellers are constrained from buying stocks in large quantities.
