Economy
Nigeria’s Trade Hits N35.2trn in Q3 2024 as Surplus Expands to N5.8trn
By Adedapo Adesanya
According to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s total merchandise trade stood at N35.2 trillion in the third quarter of 2024, representing an increase of 81.4 percent from the value recorded in the corresponding period of 2023 and a rise of 13.26 percent over the value recorded in the preceding quarter.
In the quarter under review, exports accounted for 58.3 per cent of total trade with a value of N20.5 trillion, showing an increase of 98 per cent rise over the value recorded in the third quarter of 2023 (N10.34 trillion) and 16.8 per cent compared to the value recorded in Q2 2024 (N17.5 trillion).
On the other hand, the share of imports accounted for 41.7 per cent of total trade in the third quarter of 2024, with the value of imports amounting to N14.7 trillion in Q3 2024.
This value indicates an increase of 62.3 per cent compared to the value recorded in Q3 2023 (N9.04 trillion) and 8.7 per cent over the value recorded in Q2 2024 (N13.5 illion).
With Nigeria’s exports outweighing its import, the merchandise trade balance for Q3 2024 remained positive at N5.8 trillion indicating an increase of 43.6 per cent compared to the value recorded in the preceding quarter.
A further breakdown showed that Nigeria’s exports trade continued to be dominated by crude oil exports, in the third quarter of 2024. Crude oil export was valued at N13.4 trillion representing 65.4 per cent of total exports while the value of non-crude oil exports stood at N7.08 trillion accounting for 34.6 per cent of total exports; of which non-oil products contributed N2.5 trillion or 12.2 per cent of total exports.
During the third quarter of 2024, total imports were valued at N14.7 trillion accounting for 41.7 per cent of total trade.
Nigeria’s top-ranked group import was mineral fuels with N5.14 trillion representing 35.0 per cent of total imports, this was followed by machinery and transport equipment with N3.8 trillion (25.8 per cent of total imports) and chemicals & related products with N1.9 trillion (13.5 per cent of total imports).
Nigeria imported goods mainly from Asia, valued at N7.3 trillion representing 49.7 per cent of total imports. This was followed by imports from Europe with N5.4 trillion or 36.5 per cent, America with N1.4 trillion or 9.8 per cent, while imports from Oceania stood at with N73.91 billion or 0.5 per cent in the third quarter of 2024.
Trade with African countries stood at N512.56 billion or 3.49 per cent of total imports; of which imports from ECOWAS countries amounted to N72.71 billion or 0.5 per cent of total imports.
Analysis by trading partners reveals that imports from China were valued at N3.6 trillion, representing 24.4 per cent of total imports. This was followed by imports from India with N1.7 trillion (11.3 per cent of total imports), Belgium with imports valued at N1.6 trillion or 11.1 per cent of total imports, United States of America with goods valued at N1.02 trillion (6.9 per cent of total imports) and goods from Malta valued at N766.81 billion or 5.2 per cent of total imports.
Exports by section revealed that Nigeria exported mainly mineral products valued at N18.1 trillion, or 88.5 per cent of the total export value, this was followed by exports of prepared foodstuffs; beverages, spirits and vinegar; tobacco worth N722.66 billion or 3.5 per cent of the value of total exports and vehicles, aircraft and parts thereof; vessels, with N667.11 billion or 3.3 per cent of the value of total exports.
Exports trade by region shows that Nigeria exported goods mainly to Europe with goods valued at N9.2 trillion or 45.1 per cent of total exports, followed by exports to Asia valued at N5.2 trillion or 25.3 per cent of total exports, while exports to America was valued at N3.4 trillion representing 16.5 per cent of total exports.
Exports to Africa stood at N2.5 trillion or 12.1 per cent of the total exports; out of which, good exported to ECOWAS countries was valued at N1.5 trillion.
Analysis of exports according to trading partners revealed that during the quarter under review, the main export destination was Spain with a value of N2.3 trillion or 11.1 per cent of total exports, followed by exports to the US with N1.7 trillion or 8.3 per cent of total exports, France with N1.6 trillion or 7.8 per cent of total export, the Netherlands with N1.4 trillion or 7 per cent of total exports, and exports to Italy with goods valued at N1.4 billion representing 6.7 per cent of total exports.
The NBS noted that these five countries collectively accounted for 40.8 per cent of the value of total exports in Q3, 2024.
By Dipo Olowookere
About 0.04 per cent was recovered on Friday from the loss recorded by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) the previous due to profit-taking.
Yesterday, investors were in the market with renewed vigour, mopping up stocks trading at relatively cheaper prices.
According to data, the insurance counter gained 0.41 per cent, the banking sector appreciated by 0.38 per cent, and the consumer goods index grew by 0.14 per cent.
The gains achieved by these three sectors were enough to lift Customs Street at the close of business despite the 0.26 per cent decline printed by the industrial goods segment and the 0.14 per cent loss suffered by the energy industry. The commodity counter was flat during the session.
A total of 43 equities gained weight on the last trading day of this week, while 26 equities shed weight, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
Red Star Express increased its share price by 10.00 per cent to N13.20, NCR Nigeria grew by 9.97 per cent to N128.55, SCOA Nigeria inflated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, Omatek appreciated by 9.94 per cent to N1.77, and Deap Capital expanded by 9.85 per cent to N4.46.
On the flip side, McNichols decreased by 8.81 per cent to N6.00, Legend Internet crumbled by 7.56 per cent to N5.50, Cornerstone Insurance crashed by 6.48 per cent to N6.35, C&I Leasing contracted by 6.29 per cent to N8.20, and Austin Laz slipped by 5.78 per cent to N3.75.
Yesterday, 539.9 million shares valued at N16.7 billion were transacted in 48,023 deals versus the 1.0 billion shares worth N31.6 billion executed in 51,227 deals in the preceding day, implying a shrink in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 46.01 per cent, 47.15 per cent, and 6.26 per cent apiece.
Zenith Bank was the most active for the day with 54.6 million stocks sold for N3.8 billion, Jaiz Bank traded 41.5 million units worth N359.4 million, Secure Electronic Technology transacted 37.7 million units valued at N39.2 million, Access Holdings exchanged 30.5 million units for N699.2 million, and Lasaco Assurance transacted 27.2 million units worth N68.3 million.
When the market closed for the day, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 72.21 points to 166,129.50 points from 166,057.29 points and the market capitalisation gained N31 billion to N106.354 trillion from N106.323 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a positive ending for the Naira this week after it further appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, January 16 by N1.33 or 0.09 per cent to sell for N1,417.95/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,419.28/$1.
The domestic currency also gained N2.41 against the Euro in the official market to close at N1,647.51/€1 versus the preceding session’s closing price of N1,649.92/€1, however, it suffered a N7.97 loss against the Pound Sterling in the same market window to trade at N1,901.32/£1, in contrast to Thursday’s closing price of N1,893.35/£1.
In the same vein, the Nigerian Naira depleted against the Dollar at the GTBank FX counter by N2 to quote at N1,427/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,425/$1, but strengthened against the greenback at the black market yesterday by N5 to settle at N1,485/$1 versus the N1,490/$1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
Improved supply conditions helped keep the market within range as exporters’ and importers’ inflows in addition to non-bank corporate supply enhanced liquidity as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made no visible intervention.
Stronger external inflows from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and improving current account dynamics, continue to align with structural support in the wider economy.
Nigeria has seen projections of a stronger economic or gross domestic product (GDP) growth and lower inflation in 2026, with these forecasts citing improved macroeconomic fundamentals and reform impacts.
As for the cryptocurrency market, it was mixed following selloff in precious metals and lower US stocks appeared to be denting crypto sentiment.
Gold and silver, both of which also enjoyed big rallies earlier this week, tumbled 1.2 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively while key US stock indexes — the Nasdaq, S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average — all reversed from early gains to modest losses in Friday trade.
Dogecoin (DOGE) shrank by 2.2 per cent to $0.1370, Ripple (XRP) slipped by 0.8 per cent to $2.05, Ethereum (ETH) went down by 0.7 per cent to $3,228.56, and Bitcoin (BTC) slumped by 0.6 per cent to $95,086.80.
Conversely, Litecoin (LTC) appreciated by 3.2 per cent to $74.48, Solana (SOL) rose by 0.4 per cent to $143.70, Cardano (ADA) jumped by 0.2 per cent to $0.3942, and Binance Coin (BNB) increased by 0.1 per cent to $935.88, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices settled higher amid lingering worries about a possible US military strike against Iran, a decision that may still occur over the weekend.
Brent crude settled at $64.13 a barrel after going up by 37 cents or 0.58 per cent and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished at $59.44 a barrel after it gained 25 cents or 0.42 per cent.
The US Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was expected to arrive in the Persian Gulf next week after operating in the South China Sea.
Market analysts noted that it doesn’t seem likely anything will happen soon. However, the weekends have become the perfect time for actions so as not offset the markets.
The market had risen after protests flared up in Iran and US President Donald Trump signalled the potential for military strikes, but lost over 4 per cent on Thursday as the American president said Iran’s crackdown on the protesters was easing, allaying concerns of possible military action that could disrupt oil supplies.
Iran produces approximately 3.2 million barrels per day, accounting for roughly 4 per cent of global crude production, so it was not a coincidence that markets rallied sharply through Tuesday and Wednesday as President Trump canceled meetings with Iranian officials and posted that “help is on its way” to Iranian protesters, raising fears of potential US military strikes that sent prices surging toward multi-month highs.
Weighing against those fears are potential supply increases from Venezuela.
The Trump administration is exploring plans to swap heavy Venezuelan crude for US medium sour barrels that can actually go straight into Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) caverns, since not all all oil belongs in the reserve.
According to Reuters, the Department of Energy is considering moving Venezuelan heavy crude into commercial storage at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, while US producers deliver medium sour crude into the SPR in exchange.
Analysts expect higher supply this year, potentially creating a ceiling for the geopolitical risk premium on prices.
Some investors covered short positions ahead of the three-day Martin Luther King holiday weekend in the US.
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