Nigeria’s commodity import increases 0.51% in Q1 2024
Omeiza Bilal
The National Bureau of Statistics has said that the All-Commodity Group Import Index for the first quarter of 2024 on average increased by 0.51 per cent.
The increase can be attributed to the changes in import prices of “Vehicles, aircraft and parts thereof; vessels etc.”, “Mineral products” “Articles of stone, plaster, cement, asbestos, mica, ceramic’’, and “Papermaking material; paper and paper- board, articles.
In its Commodity Price Indices and Terms of Trade (Q1 2024) report posted on its website, the NBS also stated that The All-Commodity Group Export Price Index increased on average by 0.39 per cent in Q4, 2023.
The increase was majorly attributed to changes in the prices of “Mineral products.”, “Products of the chemical and allied industries” “Plastic, rubber and articles thereof”, and “Wood and articles of wood, wood charcoal and articles”.
The All Products Terms of Trade (TOT) Index on average decreased by 0.12 percentage points just as the All-Region Group Export Index increased by 0.39 per cent points mainly due to an upward price change in exports to all economic regions.
The All-Region Group Import Index increased by 0.51 percentage points due to increases in import prices from all regions.
It said, “The month-on-month import price changes showed an increase of (+0.34) per cent points in February and (+0.17) per cent points in March 2024. The contributions according to regions were Asia (+0.46), Europe (+0.38) America (+0.29), Oceania (0.17), and Africa (+0.12), between January and February.
“Between February and March 2024, the All-Region Import Index recorded an increase in changes in import prices of (+0.17) per cent points. The regions responsible for the increase in changes in import prices were America (+0.22), Asia (+0.19), Europe (+0.10), Africa (+0.10), and Oceania (+0.08) per cent points.”
The statistics bureau stated that The All-Region Terms of Trade on average decreased by 0.12 percentage points.
The major export destinations of Nigeria in Q1, 2024 were France, Spain, The Netherlands, India and The United States of America.
“The All-Region Group Terms of Trade stood at 101.87 per cent, 101.71 per cent and101.75 percent in January, February, and March 2024, respectively. The Terms of Trade by region decreased by 0.16 per cent in February and increased marginally by 0.03 per cent in March 2024 resulting in an All-Region Term of Trade of (-0.12) percentage point,” the report stated.
