Nigeria recorded a higher trade surplus in the fourth quarter of 2025 despite a decline in total merchandise trade and exports, highlighting the country’s continued positive trade balance even as crude oil earnings weakened.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) disclosed this in its ‘Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics (Q4 2025)’, released on Tuesday.
The data shows that Nigeria posted a trade surplus of ₦1.71 trillion in Q4 2025 as total exports exceeded imports.
However, the overall value of merchandise trade fell to ₦36.21 trillion, representing a 1.07 per cent decline from ₦36.60 trillion recorded in the corresponding period of 2024.
On a quarter-on-quarter basis, total trade dropped by 8.94 per cent from ₦39.77 trillion in the third quarter of 2025, largely driven by a sharp fall in crude oil export earnings.
Total exports during the quarter stood at ₦18.96 trillion, down by 5.25 per cent compared with ₦20.01 trillion recorded in Q4 2024.
The figure also declined significantly by 16.88 per cent from ₦22.81 trillion recorded in the preceding quarter.
Crude oil remained Nigeria’s dominant export, accounting for 51.17 per cent of total exports, but its value fell sharply to ₦9.70 trillion.
This represented a 29.60 per cent year-on-year decline from ₦13.78 trillion and a 24.24 per cent drop from ₦12.81 trillion recorded in Q3 2025, making it the main factor behind the contraction in export value and overall trade.
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In contrast, imports rose during the period, reaching ₦17.25 trillion, representing a 3.98 per cent increase from ₦16.59 trillion recorded in the same quarter of 2024 and a 1.73 per cent rise from ₦16.96 trillion recorded in the previous quarter.
Nigeria’s trade during the quarter remained concentrated among a few key global partners, with the Netherlands emerging as the largest destination for Nigerian exports, accounting for ₦2.03 trillion or 10.72 per cent of total exports.
India followed with 9.64 per cent, while Spain accounted for 9.02 per cent. France and Canada made up 7.19 per cent and 5.42 per cent, respectively. Together, the five countries accounted for 41.99 per cent of Nigeria’s total export value.
On the import side, China remained Nigeria’s largest trading partner, accounting for ₦5.39 trillion or 31.22 per cent of total imports.
The United States followed with 9.34 per cent, while the Netherlands accounted for 8.80 per cent. India contributed 6.47 per cent and Brazil 3.97 per cent of Nigeria’s import bill.
Alex is a business journalist cum data enthusiast with the Pinnacle Daily. He can be reached via ealex@thepinnacleng.com, @ehime_alex on X
