Rice has moved against the grain this year. As beans climbed and cooking oil firmed, several rice brands eased through the spring at Lekki-Jakande Market. A 50kg bag of Royal Stallion rice rose from N66,000 in the week of January 26 to N70,000 across February and March, then fell back to N60,000 by the week of June 1. Measured from the February peak, that is a drop of N10,000 or 14.3%, and from the January reading it is a softer 9.1% decline.
Other long grain brands tell a similar story. At Ajah Market, a 50kg bag of Vitali long grain rice held at N70,000 across the weeks of February 2, February 9 and February 23, then read N65,000 by the week of June 1, a decline of N5,000 or 7.1%. Imported short grain rice has been the steadier line, holding at N60,000 per bag at Lekki-Jakande through February and March before easing to N58,000 in June, a modest 3.3% move that reads as broadly flat.
The cross-market comparison for June rounds out the picture. A 50kg bag of imported short grain rice was recorded at N60,000 at Ajah Market and N58,000 at Lekki-Jakande Market in the week of June 1, a difference of N2,000 between the two markets. For a household buying a single bag the gap is small, but for a trader moving volume it is the kind of spread the price check tool is designed to flag.
Rice prices in Nigeria sit at the intersection of local milling capacity and the cost of imported parboiled stock, which makes them sensitive to both the naira and to harvest cycles. The CBN monitors the exchange rate that feeds import costs, while the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service publishes supply and milling estimates for the Nigerian rice sector. The easing seen in the data is consistent with a period of steadier supply rather than fresh demand pressure.
Buyers weighing brands ahead of the next purchase can track live readings at Lekki-Jakande Market and compare them on the grain price index.