By Elisha Bala-Gbogbo and Camillus Eboh
ABUJA (Reuters) -Nigeria recorded a balance of payments surplus of $6.83 billion in 2024, driven by the impact of reforms, a stronger trade performance and renewed investor confidence in the economy, the Central Bank of Nigeria said on Monday.
Since coming into office in 2023, President Bola Tinubu has ended costly petrol and electricity subsidies and twice devalued the naira currency to boost Nigeria’s decade-long sluggish output.
Tinubu’s current focus is on overhauling the state oil firm and tax system to boost revenue and efficiency.
The balance of payments surplus compares with deficits of $3.34 billion in 2023 and $3.32 billion in 2022, the CBN reported in a statement.
Nigeria’s current and capital accounts also showed a surplus of $17.22 billion in 2024, driven by a goods trade surplus of $13.17 billion. Remittances remained a key support, rising 8.9% to $20.93 billion last year, the CBN said.
Gas exports rose 48.3% to $8.66 billion and non-oil exports grew by 24.6% to $7.46 billion, the CBN said. Fuel imports fell 23.2% to $14.06 billion, while non-oil imports also fell by 12.6% to $25.74 billion during the same period.
“The positive turnaround in our external finances is evidence of effective policy implementation and our unwavering commitment to macroeconomic stability,” Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso said.
Nigeria’s financial account showed a net acquisition of $12.12 billion in assets, driven by a surge in portfolio investment inflows, which more than doubled to $13.35 billion. But this was slightly offset by a decline in foreign direct investment, which fell by 42.3% to $1.08 billion.
Overall, Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves rose by $6 billion to $40.19 billion by year-end 2024, the CBN said.
(Reporting by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo and Camillus Eboh; Editing by Alison Williams, Franklin Paul and Alex Richardson)
