The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported a 3.46% growth in Nigeria’s gross domestic product (GDP) for the third quarter (Q3) of 2024. This figure marks an improvement from the 3.19% growth recorded in the second quarter (Q2) of 2024 and is higher than the 2.54% growth observed in Q3 2023.
According to the NBS report published on Monday, the services sector was the primary driver of this growth, posting a robust growth rate of 5.19% and contributing 53.58% to the overall GDP.
“The agriculture sector recorded a growth of 1.14%, slightly down from the 1.30% growth in Q3 2023,” the report stated. “The industry sector saw a growth of 2.18%, an increase from the 0.46% recorded in the same period last year.”
The report also highlighted that the nominal GDP for Q3 2024 was N71.13 trillion. While nominal GDP measures the total value of goods produced without adjusting for inflation, real GDP accounts for inflation. The nominal GDP represents a year-on-year growth of 17.26% compared to N60.66 trillion in Q3 2023.
Oil Production and Sector Performance
The NBS noted that average oil production rose to 1.47 million barrels per day (mbpd) in Q3 2024, up from 1.41 mbpd in Q2 2024 and slightly higher than the 1.45 mbpd recorded in Q3 2023.
“The real growth of the oil sector was 5.17% year-on-year in Q3 2024, an increase of 6.02 percentage points from the -0.85% recorded in Q3 2023,” the NBS reported. “However, this represents a decrease of 4.98 percentage points compared to the 10.15% growth in Q2 2024. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the oil sector grew by 7.39% in Q3 2024.”
The oil sector’s contribution to the total real GDP was 5.57% in Q3 2024, slightly up from 5.48% in Q3 2023 but down from 5.70% in Q2 2024.
Non-Oil Sector Contributions
The non-oil sector demonstrated a growth of 3.37% in real terms during Q3 2024, which is an increase from the 2.75% growth rate in Q3 2023 and the 2.8% recorded in Q2 2024.
“In real terms, the non-oil sector contributed 94.43% to the nation’s GDP in Q3 2024, slightly lower than the 94.52% share in Q3 2023, but higher than the 94.30% recorded in Q2 2024,” the NBS added.
Key contributors to the non-oil sector’s performance included information and communication (particularly telecommunications), trade, agriculture (crop production), financial and insurance services (financial institutions), manufacturing (food, beverage, and tobacco), real estate, and construction. These sectors played a significant role in driving the overall GDP growth for the quarter.