Several states in Nigeria are grappling with unwarranted hikes in petrol prices, surpassing official post-subsidy rates. This is according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in their “Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) Price Watch” report for July 2023.
Fuel prices increase in Borno, Abia, and Gombe
Borno state experienced the highest surge, with a price of N657.27 per liter, exceeding the N600.35 per liter post-subsidy rate by 9.5%. Abia and Gombe followed, overshooting adjusted prices by 7.13% and 6.9% respectively.
A separate NBS report on Automotive Gas Oil (Diesel) for the same period indicated a similar trend. Niger state topped the chart at N892.50 per liter, marking a 12.34% increase from N794.48. Abia and Enugu also saw significant hikes of 12.1% and 9.85% respectively.
Nonetheless, Edo, Kwara, and Benue states had the lowest petrol prices at N530.00, N535.44, and N537.00, while Bayelsa, Anambra/Bauchi, and Ondo had the lowest diesel prices at N683.20, N700.00, and N701.58 respectively.
Comparing year-on-year figures, the average price of Premium Motor Spirit surged by 215.95%, reaching N600.35 in July 2023 from N190.01 in July 2022.
Automotive Gas Oil also climbed by 2.60% to N794.48 per liter in July 2023 from N774.38 in July 2022.
Month-on-month statistics revealed a 9.99% petrol price increase to N600.35 in July 2023 from June’s N545.83, while diesel price dropped by 2.62% to N794.48 in July 2023 from N815.83 in June 2023.
The NBS data also illustrated regional disparities. The North-East zone had the highest petrol price at N630.13, while the North-Central zone had the lowest at N551.58.
For diesel, the North Central zone had the highest average price of N863.10, and the South-West zone had the lowest at N759.45 compared to other zones.
