Michael Eboh
Dublin, Ireland — Nigeria spent N9.176 trillion on the importation of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol or fuel, in nine months, from January to September 2024, rising by 60.87 per cent, compared with N5.704 trillion worth of the commodity imported in the same period in 2023, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed.
Analysis of the NBS’ Foreign Trade Statistics Reports for first to third quarters of 2024, showed that petrol was the most traded commodity over the periods, followed by gas oil, durum wheat, cane sugar and used vehicles.
It should be noted that in the period under review, Nigeria mainly relied on imports to meet its domestic fuel needs, as the Dangote Refinery only commenced commercial production of premium motor spirit in September 2024, while the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) reported that its Port Harcourt refinery commenced production at the end of November 2024.
It is expected that the country would begin to enjoy the benefits of the return of domestic crude oil refining from the first quarter of 2025, pending the resolution of issues around crude oil supply and other logistical and political challenges.
Giving a breakdown of fuel imports in the nine months period, the NBS reported that in the first quarter of 2024, N2.635 trillion worth of the commodity was imported into the country, rising by 29.54 per cent, compared with N2.034 trillion recorded in the first quarter of 2023; while in the second quarter of 2024, fuel import rose by 99.2 per cent to N3.22 trillion, from N1.62 trillion in the same period in 2023.
In addition, the NBS noted that in the third quarter of 2024, N3.32 trillion was spent on fuel imports, rising by 61.7 per cent, compared with N2.05 trillion recorded in the third quarter of 2023.
Furthermore, the statistics agency revealed that the majority of the fuel imported into Nigeria in the third quarter of 2024 was from Belgium, with N1.532 trillion spent to bring in the commodity from there; while N758.747 billion worth of petrol was imported from Malta.
In general, the NBS reported that the total value of imports into Nigeria stood at N14.674 trillion in the third quarter of 2024, representing a rise of 62.30 per cent from the N9.04 trillion recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2023; while it increased by 8.71 per cent compared with N13.5 trillion recorded in second-quarter 2024.
It added that China remains Nigeria’s highest trading partner on the import side in the third quarter of 2024, followed by India, Belgium, United States of America, and Malta, noting that the most traded commodities imported during the quarter were petrol, gas oil, durum wheat, cane sugar and used vehicles.
The NBS said: “The value of agricultural goods imported in third quarter 2024 was N882.24 billion, reflecting an increase of 37.06 per cent compared with N643.68 billion in third-quarter 2023 and a decrease of 1.23 per cent when compared to N893.25 billion in second-quarter 2024.
“In the same period, raw material goods import was valued at N1.579 trillion. This represents a rise of 66.11 per cent from N950.93 billion in third quarter 2023 and a 6.62 per cent increase from N1.482 trillion in the preceding quarter.”
