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Nigeria’s foreign trade declines to N5.1tn

By on May 16, 2014

The total value of Nigeria’s external merchandise trade dropped to about N5.16 trillion in the fourth quarter of 2013, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

That represented an 8.8 per cent (N495.3 billion) decline compared to about N5.65 trillion recorded the previous quarter.

Crude oil exports in the fourth quarter of 2013 stood at about N2.98 trillion while the non-crude oil component accounted for N495.2 billion.

Although the value of imports also declined by 19.1 per cent to about N1.68 trillion in the period under review from about N2 trillion the preceding quarter,  exports notwithstanding fell 2.7 per cent to about N3.47 trillion in the period under review compared to about N3.57 trillion in the third quarter of last year.

According to the Foreign Trade Statistics Fourth Quarter 2013 report was released yesterday by the statistical agency, the resulting trade balance of about N1.79 trillion presented an increase of N302.2 billion or 20.3 per cent from the preceding quarter.

However, when compared with the fourth quarter of the previous year, the value of the nation’s total merchandise trade also declined by 28.2 per cent or about N2.02 trillion.

Meanwhile a breakdown of the exports statistics showed that India ranked top as Nigeria’s major export partner with trade volume recorded at N613.8 billion.
This was followed by the Netherlands, Italy, Brazil and South Africa with export values of N393.7 billion, N310.7 billion, N289.8 billion and N218.9 billion respectively.

On the other hand, China remained Nigeria’s major trade partner in terms of imports value of N374.1 billion which was followed by the United States, South Korea, Netherlands and India with N185.1billion, N122.5 billion, N95.7 billion and N90.7 billion of imports respectively.

But total exports for 2013 amounted to about N14.24 trillion which was lower by about N8.20 trillion or 36.5 per cent from the value of total exports recorded in 2012 while total imports in the same period amounted to about N7.01 trillion, about N1.39 trillion or 24.7 percent more than the cumulative total for 2012.

The NBS further attributed the decline in Q4 2013 imports to “fall in the value of imports of Beverages and Tobacco by N202.1billion or 93.8 per cent and a N25.0 billion or 56.7 per cent decline in the value of Crude Inedible Materials when compared against the previous quarter.

However, of the total exports to Africa, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) accounted for 38.2 percent or N167.8 billion.

 

 

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