Business Post Contributor
By Sodeinde Temidayo David
The average price paid by consumers for premium motor spirit (PMS) otherwise known as petrol increased month-on-month by 0.2 per cent to N165.91 in July 2021 from N165.61 in June 2021.
In its Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) Price Watch for July 2021, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said the commodity saw a rise on a year-on-year basis by 15.5 per cent from N143.63 in July 2020.
Breaking down the data, Business Post observed that Adamawa State saw the highest price of petrol as consumers bought the product at N173.67 per litre, 7.5 per cent more than they paid in the month of June (N161.63 per litre).
It was followed by Kwara, which saw a 1.5 per cent increase to N170.56 from N168.13 per litre sold in June while Plateau State saw a stable price of N170.40 per litre.
Meanwhile, the states with the lowest average price for which the fuel was sold were Taraba at N162.25 a litre, Niger at N163.71 per litre and Gombe at N163.17 a litre.
Looking at the average price in which petrol was sold in the different zones of the country, the South-South and the South East were tied as the most expensive regions with N166.46 per litre.
They were followed by the North Central with N166.37, the North East sold at N166.24, and the North West traded fuel at N164.89.
Meanwhile, the South West maintained an overall low price range of N165.19 per litre.
In the South West, Lagos recorded the cheapest rate to buy petrol at N164.08 per litre while Ondo sold for a higher price of N166.50 for every litre.
The price of petrol increased as the landing cost of petrol imported into the country rose to a new high of N249.42 per litre on the back of high global crude oil prices.
The further rise in the landing cost of petrol means increased subsidy as the pump price of the product remains steady at N162-N165 per litre.
The federal government had in March 2020 removed the petrol subsidy but earlier this year, it resurfaced as the government has left the pump price of the product unchanged since December despite the increase in global oil prices.
