Nigeria’s Trade Volume With US Drops to $8.3bn in 2018

• Nigeria’s Trade Volume With US Drops to $8.3bn in 2018

Nigeria’s total trade volume with the US declined from about $9.4 billion in 2017 to $8.3 billion in 2018, according to a US report.

The report revealed Nigeria recorded a trade surplus of $3 billion with the U.S and ranked 49th U.S trading partner in terms of volume.

The total goods imported from the US in 2018 stood at 2.7 billion, while goods worth $5.6 billion was exported in the same year.

Dr Lazarus Angbazo, the President of the American Business Council, Nigeria, who spoke on “The role and impact of US business on the Nigerian economy” in Lagos, said the data for capital goods and services showed that the Nigerian market supports 35,000 jobs in the US.

“Today, Nigeria is the largest US trade partner within sub-Saharan Africa and accounted for as high as 44.8 per cent of total US trade of $79.7bn in 2007.

“In 2017, Nigeria accounted for 24 per cent of the total US trade of $39bn with Africa.”

He said, “American businesses operate in virtually every sector of the Nigerian economy. The notable brands include P&G, UPS, Citibank, Google, IBM, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Microsoft, KPMG, PWC as well as small companies like Rendevour, among others.”

The drop in the volume of trade is likely due to the drop in crude oil importation by the U.S., Nigeria’s largest export commodity to the US.