Diesel price hits N3,277 per litre in May, up 86% year-on-year — NBS

The average retail price of diesel rose to ₦3,277.47 per litre in May 2026, representing an 86.40 percent increase compared to ₦1,758.26 recorded in the same month last year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics has shown.

The NBS Automotive Gas Oil Price Watch report for May 2026, released in June, also showed a sharp month-on-month surge of 32.44 percent from ₦2,474.69 in April 2026 — one of the steepest single-month jumps in recent months.

The 12-month trend data in the report reveals a prolonged decline in diesel prices through the second half of 2025, with the national average falling from ₦1,813.81 in June 2025 to as low as ₦1,398.57 in October 2025, before a recovery that accelerated dramatically into 2026. Prices rose from ₦1,420.17 in February to ₦1,648.08 in March, then to ₦2,474.69 in April, before the steep climb to May’s figure.

At the state level, Nasarawa recorded the highest average price at ₦3,785.84 per litre, followed by Plateau at ₦3,576.40 and Ebonyi at ₦3,574.75. The cheapest diesel was found in Kogi State at ₦2,823.85, with Benue at ₦2,961.33 and Kebbi at ₦3,016.14 rounding out the lowest three.

In the northwest — a zone that includes Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kebbi, Katsina and Jigawa states — the zonal average stood at ₦3,313.60, the highest among all six geopolitical zones. Kano State recorded ₦3,302.96, while Sokoto and Kaduna posted ₦3,514.16 and ₦3,535.84 respectively — both among the highest in the zone.

The South-West zone recorded the lowest zonal average at ₦3,227.55, though prices there also surged by 107.80 percent year-on-year.

The NBS data was gathered from over 10,000 respondents across sample outlets in all 774 local government areas of the 36 states and the FCT.