NBS attributes 28.9% increase in export to depreciation of naira

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has said that the increase in the value of exports put at 28.9 per cent and 3.8 per cent towards the end of second and third quarter of 2016 was due to the depreciation of the naira.

The bureau noted that the value of export of goods and services was greatly affected by the price of oil, given that a large percentage of the total value of export consists of crude oil because Nigeria was facing international dollar prices for oil as well as other commodities.

It added that, exports in real terms increased due to exports being delayed to take advantage of the lower exchange rate. In a statement released yesterday in Abuja, the NBS noted that the value of imports increased relatively to the previous quarter by 14.7 per cent and the third quarter of 2015 by 32.4 per cent respectively.

It also said that the increase recorded was partly due to the exchange rate movements, as both the official and parallel markets depreciated during the period.

The bureau cautioned that in the long run, it may lead to substitution towards local products which consumes time and increases the value of import only at the short run, adding that the volume of imports declined year on year by 14.1per cent, and by 21.1 per cent quarter on quarter.