Refined Fuels Account For 47.5% Of UK Imports From Nigeria Amid Overall Trade Decline

The United Kingdom imported more refined petroleum products than crude oil from Nigeria in the year to March 2026, according to a new factsheet from the UK’s Department for Business and Trade.

Refined oil shipments from Nigeria to the UK were valued at £674.5 million, or 47.5 per cent of UK goods imports from Nigeria in the 12 months ended March 2026.

Crude oil ranked second at £438.9 million (30.9 per cent), while natural gas accounted for £179.3 million (12.6 per cent).

The report said crude oil imports from Nigeria fell sharply—down 64.3 per cent from the previous year—while natural gas imports rose 6.9 per cent. Growth rates for refined products and some other items were suppressed by the Office for National Statistics where percentage changes exceed 100 per cent from a low base.

By value, refined petroleum products have overtaken crude oil as Nigeria’s top goods export to the UK, a notable shift in the composition of energy trade between the countries.

Beyond fuels, the UK’s leading goods imports from Nigeria included coffee, tea and cocoa products (£29.3 million, 2.1 per cent) and processed fertilisers (£25.2 million, 1.8 per cent).

The UK was also a major supplier of refined products to Nigeria, exporting £725.6 million of refined petroleum in the same period—51.2 per cent of its goods exports to Nigeria—even as these exports declined 44.7 per cent year on year. Other significant UK exports to Nigeria were toiletries (£61.6 million), textile fabrics (£48.6 million), industrial machinery (£40.3 million) and mechanical power generators (£32.9 million).

Overall trade between the two countries weakened. Total trade in goods and services stood at £7.3 billion in the four quarters to the end of Q1 2026, down 3.4 per cent (£258 million) from a year earlier. UK exports to Nigeria slipped 0.9 per cent to £5.3 billion, while imports from Nigeria fell 9.3 per cent to £2.0 billion. Goods made up £1.4 billion (69.7 per cent) of UK imports from Nigeria, with services accounting for £616 million (30.3 per cent). Year-on-year, goods imports declined 11.3 per cent and services imports fell 4.3 per cent.

Despite the downturn, the UK recorded an overall trade surplus with Nigeria of £3.3 billion in the 12 months to March 2026, up from £3.1 billion the previous year. However, the UK moved from a goods trade surplus with Nigeria (£344 million) to a goods trade deficit (£3 million) over the same period, while its services surplus widened to £3.3 billion from £2.8 billion.

Nigeria remained the UK’s 38th largest trading partner, accounting for 0.4 per cent of total UK trade, ranking 29th as an export market and 50th as an import source.