Nigeria recorded a trade surplus of N6.95 trillion in the second quarter of 2024, according to a report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Wednesday. This marks a 6.60% increase from the N6.52 trillion surplus recorded in the previous quarter. However, the country’s total merchandise trade for Q2 2024 stood at N31.89 trillion, reflecting a 3.76% decline from Q1 2024, but a significant 150.39% rise from the same period in 2023.
“The value of total imports stood at ₦12,473.53 billion in the second quarter of 2024, representing a decrease of 10.71% compared with Q1 2024 (₦13.97 trillion), but a rise of 97.93% compared to Q2 2023 (₦6.30 trillion),” the NBS report noted.
Exports performed strongly, totaling ₦19,418.93 billion in Q2 2024, marking a 1.31% increase from Q1 2024 (₦19,167.36 billion) and a 201.76% surge from Q2 2023 (₦6,435.13 billion). “In the quarter under review, exports accounted for 60.89% of total trade, reflecting a marginal increase of 1.31% from Q1 2024,” the report added.
Crude oil continued to dominate Nigeria’s export market, with crude oil exports valued at ₦14.56 trillion, making up 74.98% of total exports. Non-crude oil exports stood at ₦4.86 trillion, accounting for 25.02% of total exports, with non-oil products contributing ₦1.94 trillion, or 10.01% of total exports.
The Q2 performance underscores Nigeria’s continued dependence on crude oil, but also reflects a growing focus on diversifying export revenues.