The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reported a current account surplus of $3.73 billion for the first quarter of 2025, marking a slight rise from the $3.69 billion recorded in the same quarter of 2024, but a small dip from the $3.8 billion posted in the fourth quarter of last year.
This was contained in the apex bank’s latest Balance of Payments (BOP) report released for Q1 2025.
“In Provisional BOP statistics for Q1’25 show a current account surplus of $3.73 billion, which was lower than the $3.8 billion recorded in the previous quarter, but slightly higher than the $3.69 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2024,” the CBN said.
According to the report, the surplus was supported by several key factors: stronger non-oil exports, reduced non-oil imports, improved goods account balance, and a continued surplus in the secondary income segment.
One of the most notable improvements came from the goods account, which rose from $2.62 billion to $4.16 billion, thanks to increased exports. Non-oil exports jumped by 30.39% to $2.66 billion, while gas exports also grew, moving from $2.10 billion to $2.66 billion.
Additionally, non-oil imports dropped to $6.77 billion from $7.37 billion, and overall imports declined to $9.75 billion from $10.05 billion in Q4 2024, largely due to lower imports of petroleum products and non-oil goods.
The CBN attributed the stronger export performance to a 9.79% growth in total exports, reaching $13.91 billion in Q1 2025. This was largely due to increased oil and gas shipments and a more favourable exchange rate. “This development was triggered by higher quantity of oil & gas exported and depreciation of the naira, which made our non-oil exports cheaper/more competitive,” the bank explained.
However, not all indicators were positive. The services account saw a widening net outflow, increasing to $3.69 billion from $3.48 billion in the previous quarter, which the CBN said was “due to higher net imports of travel and other business services in the review period.”
In the primary income account, debit balances also rose 13.48% to $2.02 billion, attributed to increased interest payments owed to foreign investors.
The secondary income account, despite remaining in surplus at $5.29 billion, saw a 17.86% decline compared to Q4 2024. The drop was linked to reduced inflows of foreign aid and grants, which may have been influenced by a U.S. executive order, according to the CBN.
Furthermore, remittances from the Nigerian diaspora—an important component of the secondary income—dropped to $4.93 billion from $5.08 billion in the previous quarter.
Overall, while the current account remained in surplus, the CBN’s report highlighted a mixture of gains and setbacks, shaped by global trends, domestic economic adjustments, and exchange rate dynamics.
