The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has called on the federal government to deepen ongoing macroeconomic reforms to stabilise prices, strengthen investor confidence, and ease the burden on businesses and consumers.
According to Nairametrics, the chamber warned that despite signs of moderation in inflationary trends, millions of Nigerians, particularly manufacturers, traders, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), and low-income households, continue to grapple with elevated costs of food, transportation, energy, and logistics.
Director-General of LCCI, Dr. Chinyere Almona, made the call while reacting to the latest inflation report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which showed that Nigeria’s headline inflation rate rose to 15.69 per cent in April 2026 from 15.38 per cent recorded in March.
Although the month-on-month inflation rate slowed significantly from 4.18 per cent to 2.13 per cent, Almona noted that the pace of price increases remained troubling for businesses already operating in a difficult environment.
According to her, the inflationary pressure continues to erode purchasing power, weaken consumer demand, and compress business margins across several sectors of the economy.
“The chamber observes that inflation continues to weigh heavily on manufacturers, MSMEs, traders, and consumers, through rising costs of food, transportation, energy, and logistics,” she stated.
She added that the higher rural inflation figure of 16.36 percent reflected deeper structural challenges in the economy, including insecurity in food-producing communities, poor transportation networks, weak storage systems, and persistent supply chain disruptions.
“The higher rural inflation rate also highlights ongoing supply chain disruptions, insecurity in food-producing areas, and weak distribution infrastructure,” she added.
Almona, however, acknowledged that inflation had moderated considerably when compared with the 26.82 per cent recorded in April 2025, but stressed that many Nigerians were yet to experience meaningful relief due to lingering economic pressures and declining purchasing power.
She said sustaining the current inflation moderation would require stronger policy coordination, exchange rate stability, improved energy supply, and deliberate support for local production.
According to the chamber, urgent measures are needed to reduce logistics and energy costs, which remain major contributors to inflation and rising business expenses.
LCCI also urged the federal government to intensify efforts to stabilize the foreign exchange market, noting that exchange rate volatility continues to disrupt planning, pricing, and investment decisions for businesses.
The chamber maintained that long-term price stability could only be achieved through reforms to boost productivity, improve infrastructure, enhance food security, and create a more business-friendly operating environment.
“The LCCI reiterates that durable price stability can only be achieved through productivity-driven reforms, improved infrastructure, enhanced food security, and a more business-friendly operating environment,” Almona said.
She further stressed the need for Nigeria to reduce its vulnerability to global commodity shocks and geopolitical tensions, particularly disruptions linked to the Middle East crisis and global energy supply chains.
According to her, the country must strategically position itself to benefit from shifting global energy dynamics by increasing local crude oil production, strengthening domestic refining capacity, and expanding gas exports to European and African markets.
She also advocated increased local production of urea and other agricultural inputs to strengthen food security and reduce dependence on imported supplies amid rising global uncertainty.
The latest NBS inflation report showed that headline inflation rose by 0.31 percentage points year-on-year in April 2026, driven largely by sustained increases in food prices, transportation costs, and energy expenses, as well as supply-side constraints.
The report indicated that the 12-month average Consumer Price Index stood at 19.16 percent, slightly lower than the 19.33 percent recorded in April 2025, suggesting a gradual easing of broader inflationary pressures.
Urban inflation was recorded at 15.40 per cent year-on-year, while rural inflation was higher at 16.36 per cent, underscoring the severity of inflationary pressure in rural communities.
Food inflation rose to 16.06 per cent year-on-year, significantly lower than the 24.68 per cent recorded during the corresponding period last year.