Shy of our projection of 22.42% by 1bps, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported that headline inflation for May 2023 came in at 22.41% YoY (vs. 22.22% YoY in April 2023). The uptick in inflation was primarily driven by the increase in the food index as it rose by 24.82% YoY (vs 24.61% YoY in April) due to higher prices of food items like oils & fat, yam & tubers, bread, cereals, fish, potatoes, fruits, vegetables, and meat. In contrast, the core index grew at a slower pace by 20.06% YoY from 20.14% YoY in April due to the base effect from the corresponding period last year.
