Nigeria’s imports from China surged to N14.15tn in 2024, more than doubling the N6.6tn recorded in 2023, data from the latest Foreign Trade Statistics report published by the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

This represents a year-on-year increase of N7.55tn or 114.3 per cent, reaffirming China’s position as Nigeria’s top import partner.

On the export side, Nigeria’s shipment to China rose from N891.38bn in 2023 to N2.99tn in 2024, representing an increase of 236 per cent.

Despite this growth, China ranked only seventh among Nigeria’s top export destinations for the year, further widening the trade imbalance between the two countries.

Total bilateral trade between Nigeria and China stood at N17.14tn in 2024, up from N7.49tn in 2023, marking a 128.8 per cent increase in trade volume.

However, with imports making up over 82.5 per cent of this total, Nigeria maintained a significant trade deficit with the Asian giant. A breakdown of Nigeria’s top imports from China in 2024 reveals a dominance of industrial, automotive, and technology-related products.

Leading the list were photovoltaic cells not assembled in modules or made up into panels, which amounted to N228.99bn. This was followed by spark-ignition internal combustion piston engines and electric motors valued at N121.15bn, and communication-related machines for reception, conversion, and transmission of voice, images, or data, which came in at N114.43bn.

Other major imports included buses or lorry-type vehicles (N96.48bn), air conditioning machines (N77.57bn), and various chemical and polymer materials such as polypropylene (N17.83bn), glutamic acid and its salts (N48.57bn), and kaolin clays (N3.65bn).

Lesser-valued imports like veneer sheets (N9.27bn), gypsum (N60.09m), and anhydrite also featured among the selected items. The rise in photovoltaic cell imports may reflect Nigeria’s growing appetite for solar technology and off-grid power solutions amid national electricity supply challenges.

Similarly, the large import of vehicle parts and machinery underlines the sustained reliance on foreign-built automotive components and industrial equipment. On the export front, Nigeria’s largest commodity to China in 2024 was sesame seeds, totalling N96.71bn.

Other key exports included cathodes and sections of cathodes (N14.28bn), unwrought aluminium alloys (N9.28bn), and tin ores and concentrates (N9.95bn).

Exports of lead ores, zinc ores, and technically specified natural rubber also contributed, albeit with smaller values ranging from N2.29bn to N5.61bn. The export basket shows a concentration on raw materials and primary goods, with little evidence of high-value manufactured exports.

This continues a long-standing pattern in Nigeria-China trade relations, where Nigeria imports finished or industrial goods and exports raw commodities. While the increase in exports may signal improved access to the Chinese market, concerns persist over the sustainability of a trade framework that is largely built on raw material exports.



https://punchng.com/nigeria-imported-n14tn-chinese-goods-in-2024-nbs/