Nigeria’s trade surplus soars 33.63% to N6.95trn in Q2’24

Onome Amuge

Nigeria’s external sector performance continued to show growth in the second quarter of 2024, as the country’s foreign trade surplus increased by 33.63 percent from the previous quarter to N6.95 trillion. This improvement, combined with the surplus of N5.19 trillion recorded in the first quarter of 2024, brought the total foreign trade surplus to N12.14 trillion in the first half of the year.

The latest foreign trade statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reveal that fuel products emerged as the top imported goods in Nigeria, highlighting the country’s continued reliance on energy imports.

The NBS quarterly foreign trade statistics revealed a drop in the value of other oil product imports for Nigeria in Q2 of 2024, with a recorded value of N4.425 trillion, down by 23.34 percent from N5.772 billion in the first quarter of 2024. Despite this decline, the value of the oil products remains significantly higher than the corresponding period in 2023, marking a 98.64 percent rise from N2.23 trillion recorded in the second quarter of 2023.

According to the NBS, Nigeria’s overall import bill for the second quarter of 2024 stood at N12.47 trillion, a decline of 10.71 percent from the previous quarter, which saw a total import value of N13.97 trillion.

Despite the overall decrease in import values, the imports for the second quarter of 2024 reflected a 97.93 percent increase when compared with the corresponding quarter in 2023, which recorded a total import value of N6.3 trillion.

The statistics agency indicated that the Q2 2024 trade surplus recorded a 6.60 percent increase from the previous quarter, signifying an improvement in the country’s export performance despite a moderate decline in total merchandise trade.

The NBS also reported that total merchandise trade in the second quarter of 2024 amounted to N31.89 trillion, marking a 3.76 percent decline compared to the first quarter of 2024. However, this figure also represented a 150.39 percent increase from the corresponding period in 2023.

The NBS report read, “The share of total imports accounted for 39.11 percent of total trade in the second quarter of 2024 with the value of imports amounting to N12.47 trillion in Q2, 2024. This value indicates a decrease of 10.71 percent over the value recorded in Q1 2024 (N13.97 trillion) and a rise of 97.93 percent compared to the value recorded in Q2.

“The merchandise trade balance in the second quarter of 2024 remained positive at N6.95tn indicating an increase of 33.63 percent compared to the value recorded in the preceding quarter.”

The NBS report demonstrated the export sector’s pivotal role in maintaining Nigeria’s trade surplus, with total exports for the second quarter of 2024 accounting for 60.89 percent of the country’s total trade, at a value of N19.42 trillion.

Compared to the previous quarter (Q1 2024), this represented a modest 1.31 percent increase, signifying sustained momentum in the sector. Further, the Q2 2024 figure marked an impressive 201.76 per cent surge compared to the same period in 2023, indicating a significant improvement in the country’s export performance.

The report noted that crude oil exports remained the dominant contributor to Nigeria’s overall export earnings in the period under review, accounting for 74.98 percent of the total export value at N14.56 trillion.

Non-oil exports contributed 25.02 percent to the total export value, amounting to N4.86 trillion. Non-oil products, on the other hand, accounted for N1.94 trillion of the total exports.

According to the NBS, Nigeria’s total exports stood at N19.42 trillion in the second quarter of 2024, marking a 1.31 percent growth from the N19.17 trillion recorded in the preceding quarter. The upward trend was further evident when compared to the corresponding period in 2023, where the total export value was N6.44 trillion, representing a 201.76 percent increase in the space of a year.

The report also revealed that Spain, the United States of America, France, India, and The Netherlands emerged as Nigeria’s top five export partners in Q2 of 2024, with crude oil, liquefied natural gas, other petroleum gases, superior-quality cocoa beans, and urea being the primary traded commodities.

The report indicated that Nigeria’s export destinations were largely dominated by European and American countries, with Spain emerging as the country’s largest export partner in Q2 of 2024. Spain imported goods from Nigeria worth N2.01 trillion, representing 10.34 percent of the country’s total exports.

The U.S emerged as Nigeria’s second-largest export partner, importing N1.86 trillion worth of goods, representing 9.56 per cent of the total export value.

France followed closely behind, accounting for 9.37 percent of Nigeria’s total exports with a total value of N1.82 trillion. Other key export partners included India (N1.65 trillion or 8.50 percent) and the Netherlands (N1.38 trillion or 7.10 per cent).

Collectively, the top five export partners contributed 44.87 percent of Nigeria’s total exports during the second quarter of 2024.

In contrast to the upward trend of exports, the report showed that imports to Nigeria in the second quarter of 2024 declined. 

The total value of imported goods amounted to N12.47 trillion, accounting for 39.11 percent of the country’s total merchandise trade for the quarter. This represented a 10.71 percent decrease from the N13.97 trillion recorded in the preceding quarter. However, compared to the corresponding quarter in 2023, the value of imports saw a 97.93 percent increase.

The decline in imports, as detailed in the report, resulted in a more pronounced trade surplus, further emphasising Nigeria’s export strengths relative to its import demands.

The report also highlighted the continued dominance of China as Nigeria’s largest supplier of goods, with the Asian economic powerhouse accounting for 24.29 per cent of the country’s total imports, with the value of imports from China amounting to N3.03 trillion.

The report further indicated that Belgium emerged as Nigeria’s second-largest import partner in the second quarter of 2024, supplying goods valued at N1.79 trillion, accounting for a substantial 14.35 percent of the country’s total imports.

India also played a significant role in supplying Nigeria with goods, contributing N1.06 trillion, or 8.49 per cent of the total imports. The U.S emerged as the fourth-largest import partner, contributing N917.84 billion (7.36 percent) of the total imports, while the Netherlands came in fifth, with imports valued at N585.3 billion (4.69 percent) of total imports.

The NBS report also provided insights into the transportation modes utilised for Nigeria’s foreign trade activities, highlighting the dominance of maritime transport in the export sector.

In Q2 of 2024, N19.25 trillion worth of exports were transported by sea, accounting for 99.14 percent of total exports.

While the report affirmed the critical role of maritime transport in Nigeria’s foreign trade activities, it also highlighted the limited contribution of other modes of transportation, particularly in the country’s export sector.

Air transport accounted for 0.38 percent of total exports, with N73.72 billion in exports transported via air. Road transport played an even more minor role, accounting for 0.16 percent of the total exports, with a value of N30.72 billion.

The report also noted that maritime transport was the dominant method for importing goods into Nigeria, accounting for 94.94 per cent of the total imports, or N11.84 trillion.

Meanwhile, air transport contributed 4.66 percent of the total imports, with a recorded value of N531.38 billion, while road transport accounted for 0.40 percent, or N49.97 billion, of the total imports in the quarter under review.