Today, we continue our discussion on the latest quarterly report on foreign trade in goods from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), following our initial commentary last week (Good Morning Nigeria 14 March 2023). The Q4’22 foreign trade data shows a net trade surplus of NGN997bn, which represents a +271% q/q increase compared with the NGN269bn surplus it recorded in the previous quarter. The net surplus trade position in Q4 ’22 marked the fourth in a row. On a 12M ‘22 basis, the total trade surplus stands at NGN1.2trn.

The higher net trade surplus in Q4 ’22, relative to the previous quarter, was due to a 7% q/q increase in the value of exports at NGN6.4trn, and a -16% q/q decline in the value of imports to NGN5.4trn.

The top three imported commodities were motor spirit ordinary (NGN1.6trn), gas oil (NGN220.5bn), and durum wheat – not in seeds (NGN188.0bn).

Re-exports in the quarter rose significantly by +697% q/q, but decreased -11% y/y. Year-to-date, re-exports stands at NGN351bn.

Top re-export destinations in Q4 ’22 were Namibia, Equatorial Guinea, Cameroun, Ghana, and Togo.

Similarly, the most re-exported commodities were floating or submersible drilling structures and vessels, amounting to NGN157bn.

Spain was Nigeria’s top export destination, accounting for 9.7% of exports. This was followed by Netherlands (9.0%), India (7.7%), France (7.7%), and Indonesia (7.4%). They jointly account for 41.6% of the total value of exports.

For imports, China accounted for the largest share of total imports at 25.3%. Belgium, India, and Netherlands accounted for 10.9%, 6.9% and 6.8% respectively of total imports.