Nigeria’s external merchandise trade rose to N41.44 trillion in the second quarter of 2026, producing a trade surplus of N12.60 trillion, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
The total represented a 19.13 per cent increase from N34.79 trillion in the first quarter.
Exports accounted for N27.02 trillion, or 65.20 per cent of total trade, compared with N21.16 trillion in the previous quarter. Imports stood at N14.42 trillion.
Crude oil remained Nigeria’s largest export item at N12.91 trillion, equivalent to 47.79 per cent of total exports.
Non-crude exports were valued at N14.10 trillion, while non-oil products contributed N3.72 trillion, or 13.80 per cent of total exports.
India was Nigeria’s largest export destination in the quarter with N3.28 trillion, followed by Spain at N1.98 trillion, the Netherlands at N1.90 trillion, the United States at N1.72 trillion and Togo at N1.49 trillion.
China dominated the import side with N5.91 trillion, representing 41.02 per cent of total imports. The United States, India, the Netherlands and Germany followed.
Nigeria exported N6.65 trillion worth of goods to African countries while imports from the continent totaled N1.10 trillion.
Togo, South Africa, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Egypt were the largest African destinations for Nigerian exports.
Solid-mineral exports rose sharply to N146.91 billion, up 90.03 per cent from the corresponding quarter of 2025 and 42.91 per cent from the first quarter of 2026.
Manufactured-goods trade stood at N9.90 trillion, although exports of manufactured products were only N393.03 billion, highlighting continued dependence on imported manufactured goods.
The figures show that stronger export earnings, particularly from hydrocarbons, drove the second-quarter surplus while Nigeria continued to import significant volumes of machinery, vehicles, industrial inputs and agricultural products.
