Nigeria’s crude oil trade declined by ₦716.7 billion or 46.6% in the first quarter of this year against the level recorded in fourth quarter, 2015, according to a new data released by the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics, NBS.
The report stated that mainly because of this, Nigeria’s overall exports during the first quarter recorded a steep decline, which brought the country’s trade balance down to ₦184.1 billion, or ₦548.7 billion less than in the preceding quarter.
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According to NBS, the structure of Nigeria’s export trade is still dominated by crude oil exports, with the contribution of crude oil to the value of total domestic export trade amounting to ₦821.9 billion or 64.7% (estimate figures).
The total value of Nigeria’s merchandise trade at the end of Q1, 2016 stood at ₦2,723.9 billion. From the preceding quarter value of₦3,517.4 billion, this was ₦793.5billion or 22.6% less.
This development arose due to a sharp decline in both imports and exports, the NBS report indicated.
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Exports saw a decline of ₦671.1 billion or 34.6%, while imports declined by ₦122.4 billion or 7.8%.
The value of the export trade, totaled ₦1,269.9 billion in Q1, 2016 showing a decrease of ₦671.1 billion or 34.6%, over the value recorded in the preceding quarter.
Year-on-year analysis shows that the country’s exports dropped by ₦1,395.2 billion or 52.3% against the export value recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2015.
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Exports by section revealed that the highest export product for Nigeria in Q1, 2016 was “mineral products” which accounted for₦1,054.1 billion or 83.0%. Other products that contributed the most to Nigeria’s exports include “vehicles, aircraft and parts thereof; vessels etc.” and “prepared foodstuffs; beverages, spirits and vinegar; tobacco” whose values stood at ₦72.7 billion or 5.7%, and ₦63.6 billion or 5.0% respectively, of the total exports from Nigeria for the quarter.
Exports by continent showed that Nigeria mainly exported goods to Europe and Asia, which accounted for ₦467.1 billion or 36.8% and ₦360.6 billion or 28.4% respectively, of the total export value for Q1, 2016.
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Furthermore, according to the report, Nigeria exported goods valued at ₦161.3 billion or 12.7% to the continent of Africa while export to the ECOWAS region totaled ₦50.4 billion
It added that Nigeria’s import trade stood at ₦1,454.0 billion, at the end of Q1, 2016. This was 7.8% less than the value recorded in the preceding quarter ₦1,576.4 billion. Further comparison with the corresponding quarter of last year, showed a decrease of₦273.7 billion or 15.8%.
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The structure of Nigeria’s import trade according to SITC was dominated by the imports of “machinery and transport equipments”, “mineral fuel”, and “chemicals and related products”, which accounted for 34.7%, 17.4%, and 14.7% respectively in 2016, the report further stated.
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