According to the most recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria earned over ₦12.81 trillion from crude oil exports in the third quarter of 2025, highlighting the petroleum sector’s sustained dominance in the nation’s international trade.
Crude oil alone made for 56.14% of Nigeria’s total exports in Q3 2025, according to the NBS’ Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics, suggesting a recovery in oil export earnings for the year.
While the value of crude oil exports decreased slightly from ₦13.41 trillion in Q3 2024 to ₦11.97 trillion in Q2 2025, it increased by 7.03 percent quarter over quarter.
The improvement, according to the NBS, emphasizes how crucial crude oil is to maintaining Nigeria’s foreign exchange profits.
According to the study, 87.71% of all exports in the third quarter were made up of mineral products, which were valued at ₦20.01 trillion and were primarily driven by crude oil and petroleum gas.
Other oil product exports increased to ₦7.01 trillion in addition to ₦12.81 trillion for crude oil. While it was 9.42% less than the ₦7.74 trillion reported in Q2 2025, this was a significant 51.72% rise over the ₦4.62 trillion recorded in Q3 2024.
The significant impact of oil and commodities related to oil on Nigeria’s foreign trade was highlighted by a breakdown of the export data.
Nigeria’s total goods trade was ₦38.94 trillion in Q3 2025, up 2.36% from Q2 2025 and 8.71% from the same quarter in 2024.
58.59 percent of total commerce, or ₦22.81 trillion, came from exports, while the remaining 41.41 percent, or ₦16.12 trillion, came from imports.
This led to a positive trade balance of ₦6.69 trillion, even though it was down 10.36 percent from the previous quarter.
The statistics also revealed that refined petroleum products like kerosene-type jet fuel, together with natural gas and other petroleum gases in a gaseous state, were among Nigeria’s top export commodities.
Europe Leads the World in Exports
In Q3 2025, Europe continued to be Nigeria’s top export destination in the region, taking in ₦8.71 trillion, or 38.16% of total exports, mostly from shipments of crude oil.
Asia came in second with ₦6.40 trillion, or 28.07% of overall exports, while Africa received ₦4.90 trillion, or 21.49% of total exports, the majority of which were petroleum goods sent to nearby nations.
During the quarter, Nigeria’s top export destination was India, with items valued at ₦2.26 trillion. The Netherlands (1.54 trillion), Italy (1.46 trillion), France (1.66 trillion), and Spain (1.83 trillion) came next.
38.34 percent of Nigeria’s total exports during the review period came from the five nations combined.
Nigeria’s commerce with ECOWAS and African nations was much more dominated by oil.
In Q3 2025, imports from Africa were worth ₦595.00 billion, while exports to the region totaled ₦4.90 trillion.
Crude and petroleum oils from bituminous minerals accounted for 39.57 percent of Nigeria’s exports to Africa, with a total value of ₦1.94 trillion. Motor spirit (ordinary) at ₦707.05 billion and gas oil at ₦692.08 billion came next.
Crude oil shipments to the ECOWAS subregion alone were worth ₦1.32 trillion, or 42.14% of Nigeria’s total exports to West Africa.
The data demonstrated that oil, along with gas oil and other petroleum-based goods, continued to solidify Nigeria’s position as the subregion’s main energy source.
The NBS data showed a mixed picture for non-oil exports, despite the robust performance of oil and oil-related trade.
Manufactured goods exports decreased by 6.03 percent to ₦978.53 billion, while agricultural exports plummeted by 11.69 percent year over year to ₦786.62 billion, demonstrating ongoing difficulties in diversifying Nigeria’s export base beyond crude oil.
