Stronger oil, gas and refined-product exports, alongside higher remittances, lift external balance despite wider services and income deficits…..
Nigeria’s current account surplus expanded sharply to $7.54 billion in the second quarter of 2026, rising 67.9 per cent from the $4.49 billion recorded in the first quarter, as stronger export earnings and increased remittance inflows boosted the country’s external position.
The latest figure also represents a 45.8 per cent increase compared with the $5.17 billion surplus recorded in the second quarter of 2025, according to provisional balance of payments data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The improvement was largely driven by a stronger goods balance, which more than offset wider deficits recorded in services and primary income during the quarter.
The CBN reported that the goods account surplus climbed to $10.12 billion in Q2, compared with $5.96 billion in Q1 and $4.85 billion in the corresponding quarter of 2025.
Total exports rose significantly during the period, reaching $20.08 billion from $15.56 billion in the previous quarter.
The increase was spread across crude oil, natural gas, refined petroleum products and non-oil exports, pointing to a broad-based improvement in export receipts.
Crude oil export earnings increased by 15.78 per cent to $9.39 billion, while natural gas exports recorded a stronger 40.15 per cent rise to $3.63 billion.
Refined petroleum products recorded the largest increase among the major export categories, with receipts climbing 66.24 per cent to $3.94 billion.
Non-oil exports also strengthened, rising by 25.30 per cent to $3.12 billion during the quarter.
The goods balance received an additional boost from a steep reduction in crude oil imports. The value of crude oil imports fell to $580 million in Q2, compared with $1.39 billion recorded in the first quarter.
However, the improvement in merchandise trade came alongside increased outflows from other components of the current account.
Net services outflows rose to $4.67 billion in the second quarter from $3.71 billion in Q1. The CBN attributed the increase to higher net payments for transport, travel, insurance, other business services and government services not classified elsewhere.
The primary income account also recorded a wider deficit, with its debit balance increasing to $4.20 billion from $3.23 billion in the preceding quarter.
According to the CBN, the larger deficit was largely associated with increased dividend and interest payments to foreign investors.
On the other hand, the secondary income account strengthened during the period, with its balance increasing to $6.30 billion from $5.47 billion in Q1.
Personal transfers, including remittances sent home by Nigerians living abroad, rose by 9.81 per cent to $5.82 billion.
The stronger remittance inflows provided additional support to the current account and helped cushion the impact of increased payments recorded under services and primary income.
Nigeria’s financial account also recorded a notable turnaround during the quarter.
The account moved to a net lending position of $1.74 billion in Q2, reversing the $2.03 billion net borrowing position recorded in the first quarter.
Portfolio investment liabilities generated inflows of $7.09 billion during the quarter, compared with $6.03 billion in Q1.
Foreign direct investment also increased, with inflows rising to $1.15 billion from $1.03 billion in the preceding quarter.
Nigerian investments outside the country, however, resulted in additional outflows. Direct investment assets recorded $560 million, while portfolio investment assets stood at $700 million.
Other investment liabilities attracted $2.75 billion in inflows, while other investment assets recorded substantially larger outflows of $7.96 billion.
Meanwhile, the balance on net errors and omissions improved during the quarter, narrowing to negative $5.82 billion from negative $6.62 billion in Q1.
Overall, Nigeria recorded a balance of payments surplus of $3.51 billion in the second quarter, according to the CBN.
The latest improvement extends the positive trend recorded earlier in the year. Nigeria’s current account surplus had risen by 255.71 per cent in the first quarter of 2026 to $4.98 billion, from $1.40 billion in Q4 2025.
The Q1 figure was also 46.04 per cent higher than the $3.41 billion recorded in the first quarter of 2025, supported by stronger export receipts, lower petroleum product imports and reduced primary income outflows.
The current account had, however, weakened sharply in the final quarter of 2025, when the surplus fell 65.52 per cent to $1.40 billion from $4.06 billion in Q3.
The latest balance of payments data also comes against the backdrop of stronger foreign capital inflows.
Nigeria attracted $10.37 billion in foreign capital during the first quarter of 2026, representing an 83.8 per cent increase from the $5.64 billion recorded in Q1 2025.
Foreign portfolio investment was particularly strong in January, reaching $3.37 billion and accounting for 95.72 per cent of total capital imported during the month.
The combination of stronger export earnings, higher remittance receipts and reduced crude oil imports has continued to support Nigeria’s external position.
Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves have also increased by $7.09 billion since the beginning of 2026, with the latest level exceeding the CBN’s earlier projection of approximately $51.04 billion for the full year.
The continued rise in reserves provides additional external liquidity for the economy as the CBN works to strengthen stability in the foreign exchange market.
