Nigeria’s trade surplus jumps 67% to N12.59trn in Q2’26
By Yinka Kolawole
Nigeria’s merchandise trade surplus experienced a significant increase of 66.8% in the second quarter of 2026, reaching N12.59 trillion, up from N7.55 trillion in the first quarter of the year. The surge in exports contributed to a widening gap between the country’s export earnings and its import expenditures.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released its foreign trade statistics report, indicating that Nigeria’s total merchandise trade for Q2 2026 amounted to N41.44 trillion, comprised of N27.02 trillion in exports and N14.42 trillion in imports. This resulted in a surplus that was N5.04 trillion higher than the surplus recorded in Q1 2026.
A strong trade surplus is critical for enhancing foreign exchange liquidity and improving Nigeria’s external economic position. Increased export earnings could potentially stabilize the naira if they result in higher foreign exchange inflows.
The expansion of the trade surplus was largely driven by exports, which rose 27.64% quarter-on-quarter, increasing from N21.17 trillion in Q1 to N27.02 trillion in Q2. In contrast, imports experienced a more moderate increase of 5.91%, rising from N13.62 trillion to N14.42 trillion.
Year-on-year comparisons reveal an even more favorable trend, with exports jumping 18.77% from N22.75 trillion in Q2 2025, while imports saw a decline of 12.55% from N16.49 trillion.
In Q2, exports comprised 65.20% of total merchandise trade, compared to 34.80% for imports. Crude oil remained Nigeria’s largest export, valued at N12.91 trillion, which accounts for 47.79% of total exports. This figure reflects a quarter-on-quarter increase of 15.28% from N11.20 trillion.
Additionally, other oil products showed strong growth, with exports rising 53.05% from N6.78 trillion in Q1 to N10.38 trillion in Q2. Non-crude exports collectively surpassed crude oil exports at N14.11 trillion or 52.21% of total exports, with non-oil exports contributing N3.73 trillion, or 13.80%.
The performance of non-oil exports varied, with raw material exports surging 50.31% quarter-on-quarter to N2.31 trillion and solid mineral exports increasing by 42.91% to N146.91 billion. However, agricultural exports fell 31.51% from N1.17 trillion in Q1 to N802.99 billion. Meanwhile, manufactured goods exports rose 29.87% quarter-on-quarter to N393.03 billion, although they remained 51.10% below the level recorded in Q2 2025.
On the imports side, manufactured goods continued to dominate, rising 12.10% quarter-on-quarter to N9.51 trillion. Raw material imports also increased, by 13.12% to N1.79 trillion, while agricultural imports surged 45.43% to N1.20 trillion.
China was identified as Nigeria’s leading source of imports, while India became the top destination for Nigerian exports.
