Nigeria’s commerce relations inside Africa underwent a significant shake-up within the second quarter of 2025, with Togo outpacing South Africa to develop into the nation’s high African buying and selling companion.
That is in response to the most recent International Commerce in Items Statistics report by the Nationwide Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The figures from the NBS present Togo’s rise in each exports and imports, highlighting the West African nation’s rising significance as a commerce hub within the area.
Togo’s commerce increase
In Q1 2025, Togo ranked fourth amongst Nigeria’s African export locations with N134.8 billion in commerce, all of it made up of non-crude oil items.
By Q2, its place modified as exports to Togo surged to N811.97 billion, representing 27.4% of Nigeria’s whole exports to Africa. Of this, N113.3 billion got here from crude oil whereas N698.7 billion was from non-crude oil merchandise.
This six-fold soar in commerce quantity alerts Nigeria’s rising reliance on Togo’s re-export and logistics capability. With the port of Lomé serving as one in all West Africa’s busiest transshipment hubs, a big share of Nigerian exports to Togo could also be destined for redistribution throughout francophone West Africa.
On the import aspect, Togo additionally dominated in Q2, supplying Nigeria with items price N211.99 billion, representing 25.8% of whole imports from Africa. This cemented Togo’s function as Nigeria’s largest African commerce companion general, not solely on the export entrance but in addition as the highest import origin.
South Africa’s decline
- South Africa, which led the record in Q1 with N708.7 billion price of imports from Nigeria, fell to second place in Q2. Its exports from Nigeria shrank to N473.65 billion, a pointy drop of 33% in contrast with the earlier quarter.
- Crude oil continued to account for the majority of the commerce, with N430.8 billion in Q2 versus N704.7 billion in Q1.
- On imports, South Africa provided Nigeria with N115.15 billion in Q2, down from N125.38 billion in Q1. Whereas it retained second place as a supply of imports, the contraction exhibits Nigeria’s shifting commerce flows away from South Africa towards West African companions.
Different movers within the rankings
Ivory Coast maintained its third-place place in each quarters, though its commerce quantity fell barely from N428.56 billion in Q1 to N408.97 billion in Q2. Crude oil continued to dominate, accounting for N354.1 billion of the Q2 determine.
- Ghana rose to fourth place in Q2 with N307.47 billion in exports from Nigeria, up from fifth place and N122.07 billion in Q1. Notably, Ghana’s imports had been balanced between crude oil (N154.9 billion) and non-crude items (N152.6 billion), highlighting a extra diversified commerce relationship in comparison with South Africa.
- Mauritius entered the highest 5 in Q2, recording N264.98 billion in exports from Nigeria, all of it in non-crude oil merchandise. This can be a new entrant this yr into Nigeria’s high African companions, reflecting increasing commerce with island economies.
- Senegal, which was third in Q1 with N346.26 billion in imports from Nigeria, slipped to sixth in Q2 with N222.31 billion. Cameroon rose to seventh place at N106.18 billion, whereas Equatorial Guinea climbed to eighth at N96.93 billion, each absent from the highest 10 in Q1.
- Benin Republic and Niger Republic rounded out the highest 10 in Q2, although with comparatively small commerce volumes of N37.58 billion and N26.19 billion respectively. Different Q1 companions equivalent to Burkina Faso and Swaziland, fell out of the highest 10 record totally.
On the import aspect, Togo’s leap to first place in Q2 changed Angola, which was Nigeria’s largest African import supply in Q1 at N224.39 billion however dropped out of the highest 10 totally by Q2.
Equatorial Guinea emerged as a brand new entrant in Q2, supplying N97.93 billion price of products, sufficient to safe fourth place.
Different conventional suppliers like Egypt, Morocco, and Tanzania remained within the rankings however noticed shifts of their relative positions. Ghana additionally entered the highest 10 as a brand new import supply in Q2, contributing N24.66 billion, or 3% of Nigeria’s imports from Africa.
What you need to know
Nigeria recorded an upswing in its exterior commerce place within the second quarter of 2025, because the nation’s commerce surplus widened by 44.3% to N7.46 trillion, up from N5.17 trillion within the earlier quarter.
Nigeria’s whole exports stood at N22.75 trillion in Q2, a ten.5% enhance from Q1 and 28.4% greater than the identical interval in 2024. Imports, in contrast, slipped marginally by 0.9% quarter-on-quarter to N15.29 trillion.
This dynamic created the broader surplus that has boosted Nigeria’s exterior account.
