Nigerian inflation edged up to 9.3 pct in August

Nigeria's consumer inflation was at 9.3 percent year-on-year in August, up 0.1 percent from July, and staying above the central bank's target upper limit, the national bureau of statistics (NBS) said on Sunday.
Food inflation rose marginally to 10.1 percent year-on-year in August versus 10.0 percent in July.
"The marginal increase was as a result of slower increases in alcoholic beverages, tobacco and kola, health, transport and recreation and culture divisions," the NBS said.
"On a month-on-month basis, the pace of increases of food prices ... has slowed, contributing to the relatively slower (overall)pace of increases."
Nigeria's inflation rate rose above the central bank's upper limit of 9 percent in June and is at the highest level since February 2013.
Africa's biggest oil producer has been hit hard by the slump in global crude prices, which has sent its currency, the naira, spiralling. The central bank has imposed increasingly stringent foreign exchange measures to prop up the naira but investors are losing confidence.
GDP growth more than halved in the second quarter year-on-year and JP Morgan said it would drop Nigeria from its influential emerging market bonds index last week due to foreign exchange controls.