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Nigeria’s trade hits N36.1trn

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The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says Nigeria recorded N36.152 trillion as value of total trade in 2019, representing a 14.05 per cent increase over 2018.

The bureau said this in its “Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics, Quarter Four, 2019”, released on Friday in Abuja.

However, this was lower than 36.86 per cent recorded in 2018 over 2017.

“The level of imports stood at N16.959 trillion while exports were valued at N19.192 trillion, resulting in a trade balance of N2.232 trillion.

“While imports rose by 28.8 per cent in 2019 over 2018, exports rose by only 3.6 per cent and the trade balance was 58.4 per cent less than in 2018.”

It said that in the fourth quarter of 2019, the value of total trade was N10.1 trillion, or 10.2 per cent higher than the value recorded in quarter three, 2019 and 25.9 per cent higher than in quarter four, 2018.

According to the report, Nigeria’s merchandise trade grew in quarter four, 2019 but imports rose faster, exceeding falling exports.

“The value of the export component (N4.770 trillion) fell by 9.79 per cent against quarter three, 2019 but rose by 7.06 per cent when compared with the corresponding quarter in 2018.

“On the other hand, the import component (valued at N5.349 trillion) increased by 37.20 per cent in quarter four against quarter three, 2019 and 49.34 per cent against quarter four, 2018.

“The faster increase in imports resulted in a negative trade balance of N579.06billion during the quarter under review, the first since mid- 2016.”

Giving an overview of total imports in the fourth quarter of 2019, the NBS said it stood at N5.349.63 billion, representing an increase of 37.2 per cent over the value recorded in  quarter three, 2019 and 49.34 per cent over the corresponding quarter of 2018.

It added that in 2019, total imports grew by 28.8 per cent compared to 2018.

“The value of imported agricultural goods decreased by 2.8 per cent in quarter four, 2019 compared to quarter three, but rose 6.6 per cent compared to the corresponding quarter in 2018.

“The value of agricultural imports in 2019 was 12.7 per cent higher than in 2018.

“Raw material imports were 1.63 per cent higher in quarter four, 2019 compared to quarter three and 8.47 per cent higher compared to quarter four, 2018.

“Imports of raw materials grew 19.2 per cent in 2019 compared to 2018,” it said.

The report said that solid minerals imports decreased in value by 6.98 per cent in quarter four, 2019 relative to quarter three, 2019 but were higher by 5.11 per cent relative to quarter four, 2018.

However, the value of solid minerals imports rose by 28.1 per cent in 2019 compared to 2018.

The NBS said that the value of imported manufactured goods was 40.74 per cent higher in quarter four, 2019 than the level attained in quarter three 2019 and 77.50 per cent more than in quarter four, 2018.

This, it said, was due to the importation of other electrodiagnostic apparatus during the quarter.

It added that for 2019, the value of imported manufactured goods imports was 60 per cent higher than in 2018.

According to the report, the value of energy goods imports decreased by 65.27 per cent in quarter four, 2019 compared to quarter three, 2019 and by 75.86 per cent compared to quarter four of 2018.

It added that for 2019, the value of energy goods imports fell by 56.2 per cent compared to 2018.

On other oil products imports, the NBS said that they were 60.59 per cent higher in value in quarter four, 2019 than in quarter three and 2.11 per cent higher than quarter four, 2018.

“For annual 2019, the value of other oil products imports fell by 34.3 per cent relative to 2018 levels.”

For export, the NBS said total export was 9.79 per cent lower in value in quarter four, 2019 compared to quarter three, 2019 but 7.06 per cent higher relative to quarter four of 2018.

It added that in 2019, the value of total exports was 3.56 per cent higher than in 2018.

The NBS reported that in quarter four, 2019, crude oil remained the dominant export valued at N3.629 trillion and accounting for 76.1 per cent of total exports, while non crude oil exports amounted to N1.141 trillion or 23.9 per cent.

“However the value of crude oil exports in quarter four, 2019 was 3.16 per cent lower than in quarter three, 2019 and 0.88 per cent lower than the corresponding quarter of 2018.

“On an annual basis, the value of crude oil exports at N14.690 trillion, was lower than in 2018 by 3.08 per cent.”

The NBS added that for 2019, the value of oil exports was lower than in 2018 by 3.08 per cent.

The report said that other oil products export were 16.13 per cent higher in value in quarter four, 2019 compared to quarter three, 2019, but 4.85 per cent lower than the level in 2018.

It added that the value of other oil exports was 9.2 per cent lower in 2019 than in 2018.

According to it, agricultural goods exports grew in value by 61.89 per cent in quarter four, 2019 compared to quarter three 2019 but decreased by 30.23 per cent when compared with quarter four, 2018.

However, in 2019, the value of agricultural goods exports fell 10.74 per cent relative to 2018.

For raw material exports, there was a decline in value by 27.99 per cent in quarter four, 2019 against the level in quarter three, 2019 and by 48.18 per cent against quarter four, 2018, the report said.

On an annual basis, raw material exports fell 14.02 per cent in 2019 compared to 2018.

The NBS said that solid minerals exports in quarter four, 2019 was 69.58 per cent lower than the value recorded in quarter three, 2019 and 75.10 per cent less than quarter four, 2018.

It added that the 2019 value of solid minerals exports was 61.52 per cent lower than in 2018.

For manufactured goods, it said exports in quarter four, 2019 was 48.9 per cent less in value than recorded in quarter three of  2019 and 573.19 per cent higher than quarter four, 2018.

It said that in 2019, the value of manufactured goods exports was over 200 per cent higher than in 2018.

For crude oil, exports in quarter four, 2019 were 3.16 per cent lower than the value in quarter three, 2019 and 0.88 per cent lower than quarter four, 2018.

According to the report, energy goods exports in quarter four, 2019 grew by 7.29 per cent against the level in quarter three, 2019, but declined by 44.36 per cent when compared with quarter four, 2018.

It however, said that in 2019, the value of energy goods exports was lower by 25.49 per cent compared to 2018. 

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Freight forwarders irked by sluggish Custom Service in port

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Freight forwarders are irked with the low number of containers cleared by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in Apapa port, alleging that only between 38 and 40 are cleared daily.
The port users, are not happy with the challenges facing their operations in Lagos State in spite of the automation of ports operations.
“Risk Assessment Report (RAR), Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) and the latest Nigeria Customs Integrated Service II are expected to speed up cargo transaction but to no avail.
“Clearing and release of containers daily become herculean and, most times, fruitless because of human interference, coupled with incessant system break down,” lamented Mr Osita Chukwu.
Chukwu, the Convener, Save Nigeria Freight Forwarders, appealed to the NCS to make the port user-friendly to check loss of investment capital through undeserved demurrage.
According to him, it behoves customs to support other agencies to be alert to their duties to ensure transparency and accountability in remittance of funds generated from cargo transactions.
Mr Obinna Okoroafor, who compared his experience at the Republic of Benin port to Nigerian ports, said that there was less human contact in the Cotonou port than the Apapa port.
Okoroafor, a chieftain of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders, Ikorodu chapter, urged authorities at the Apapa port to employ automated platforms to hasten and ease process of doing business.
“If everything is streamlined into a proactive and functional automated platform as witnessed in other countries, it will save us time and money too,” he said.
Miss Debi Akinola, a Customs Broker, said that the Apapa port, a premier port in Nigeria, should be a model for others.
Akinola said that agencies should appoint competent officers to efficiently manage the tasks at the Apapa port.

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AfDB reports slight improvement in infrastructure

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African Development Bank (AfDB) reports
that infrastructure development growth on the continent has slightly
improved between 2016 and 2018.
 
According to the bank’s Infrastructure Index (AIDI), 
the growth has been seen mainly in the ICT and energy sectors
while the water supply and sanitation sector is still lagging behind .
 
The index which was developed by the bank
to monitor the continent’s progress in infrastructure growth, covers
the period 2000-2018.
 
It presents selected indicators that
comprise the index’s major components, namely electricity, transport,
ICT, and water and sanitation.
 
 A report released in July 
by AfDB shows that AIDI scores improved for almost all African countries between 2016 and 2018.
 
“The global index imputed for the entire continent has risen from 27.12 to 28.44.
 
The range of performance for the top 10
countries, including the Seychelles, Egypt, Libya, South Africa,
Mauritius, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Cabo Verde and Botswana improved
from 35.63-93.92 in 2016 to 36.79-94.32 in 2018.
 
“However, the improvement in the indices
for the electricity and transport sectors is more pronounced in the top
10 performing countries.
 
The top performers include Libya, 3.62
points; Republic of Congo, 3.06 points; South Africa, 3.01 points;
Gabon, 2.92 points; and Côte d’Ivoire, 2.90. The ranking of the top ten
remains unchanged, with Seychelles retaining,” stated
the report.
 
Nevertheless, a major concern raised in
the brief is on the progress of infrastructure development of water
supply and sanitation.
 
The index showed that most African
countries have witnessed slower progress in water supply and sanitation,
compared to developing countries in other regions of the world.
 
Surprisingly, some countries that ranked
in the top 10 according to the index still lack improved sanitation
facilities, particularly in rural areas.
 
According to the report, in half of the
African countries, less than 35 percent of the population have access to
improved sanitation facilities, and less than 76 percent have access to
portable water. The progress made in sanitation
is still well below the targets set by the UN’s Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs).
 
Analysts are of the view that policy
makers have been focusing mostly on seemingly directly investment
related infrastructures putting a blind eye on the importance of water
supply infrastructures.
 
The report recommended that African
leaders need to urgently address this anomaly given the massive impact
of this sector on the quality of life of Africans and its linkages to
other sectors such as health — particularly in rural
areas. Clearly, policies and investments targeting this sector are
imperative to drive up overall AIDI scores and to achieve many of the
SDGs.
 
In comparison of the continent’s regions,
the report showed that North Africa is the top performer in the overall
infrastructure development scores followed by Southern Africa, West
Africa, East Africa, and Central Africa.

North and Southern Africa recorded higher
performances in the following areas: ICT (mobile phone and internet
subscription with greater international internet bandwidth), improved
sanitation facilities, and transport.
 
On the other hand, West Africa performs
well in fixed line phone subscriptions, the number of internet users,
paved road density and, to a lesser degree, electricity generation.
 
Central Africa and East Africa recorded
moderate and sometimes low performance in international internet
bandwidth, paved road density, and phone subscriptions (both mobile and
fixed). Between 2016 and 2018, Central Africa recorded
a notable decline in both ICT and electricity indexes. However, the sub
region recorded a slight improvement in water and sanitation.
 
“Virtually all major countries improved
their scores in the AIDI 2018, though at different rates. The top 10
countries retained their overall rankings over the period. It is
noteworthy that any significant improvement in the rankings
of countries was mainly due to progress in the ICT sector and, to a
lesser degree, in transport. At the sub regional level, no changes were
recorded in the rankings over the period.
 

“However, although Central and East
African countries (accounting for about 0.4 billion people) have
maintained their fourth and fifth positions respectively, these sub
regions have the greatest potential to improve their future
scores and rankings,” concluded the report.