China supplied goods worth N11.01tn to Nigeria in the first half of 2026, accounting for 39.27 per cent of the country’s total imports during the six-month period, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.
The figure makes China by far Nigeria’s largest source of imported goods, with its share of the country’s import bill rising significantly despite a decline in Nigeria’s overall imports.
Analysis of the latest Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics showed that Nigeria’s imports from China increased from N5.10tn in the first quarter to N5.92tn in the second quarter of 2026.
The combined N11.01tn represented 39.27 per cent of Nigeria’s N28.04tn total imports between January and June, meaning that almost four out of every 10 naira spent on imported goods during the period went to products from China.
Nigeria’s dependence on Chinese imports increased compared with the corresponding period of 2025.
NBS data showed that Nigeria imported N4.66tn worth of goods from China in Q1 2025 and N4.96tn in Q2, bringing total imports from the country to N9.62tn in the first half of that year.
By comparison, imports from China increased by N1.39tn, or 14.49 per cent, to N11.01tn in H1 2026.
The increase came even as Nigeria’s overall import bill declined from N33.14tn in H1 2025 to N28.04tn in H1 2026, representing a 15.37 per cent drop.
As a result, China’s share of Nigeria’s total imports jumped from 29.03 per cent in H1 2025 to 39.27 per cent in H1 2026.
China maintained its position as Nigeria’s largest source of imported goods throughout the first half of the year.
In Q1 2026, Nigeria’s total imports stood at N13.62tn, with China accounting for N5.10tn, or 37.42 per cent.
The United States ranked second with N2.81tn, while India followed with N992.87bn.
China’s dominance became even more pronounced in Q2, when imports from the country rose by 16.09 per cent quarter-on-quarter to N5.92tn.
That represented 41.02 per cent of Nigeria’s N14.42tn total imports in the quarter.
The United States supplied N1.01tn, or 6.97 per cent, while India accounted for N924.46bn, or 6.41 per cent.
The Netherlands and Germany followed with N409.81bn and N395.87bn respectively.
The figures show that China supplied almost six times as many goods to Nigeria as the United States in Q2.
The dominance of Chinese imports extends beyond consumer products, with supplies feeding several important sectors of Nigeria’s economy.
In Q1, one of the leading imports from China was machinery used for the reception, conversion and transmission of voice, images or data, valued at N254.41bn.
Other major imports included seeders, planters and transplanters worth N137.94bn; parts of apparatus for transmitting or receiving voice, images or data valued at N104.53bn; herbicides and related agricultural products worth N103.83bn; and line pipes for oil and gas pipelines valued at N81.15bn.
In Q2, photovoltaic cells assembled into modules or panels worth N184.02bn ranked among the leading Chinese imports.
Nigeria also imported N158.73bn worth of telecommunications-related machines, N152.56bn of machinery with a 360-degree revolving superstructure, N128.88bn of herbicides and related products, and N126.45bn of machinery for cleaning, sorting or grading seeds and grains.
The figures underline China’s importance to Nigeria’s telecommunications, agriculture, construction, renewable energy and industrial sectors.
Despite the huge volume of goods imported from China, Nigeria exported considerably less to the Asian country during the period.
Nigeria exported goods worth N582.20bn to China in Q1 and N506.57bn in Q2, bringing total exports to N1.09tn in H1 2026.
With imports from China reaching N11.01tn, Nigeria recorded an estimated N9.92tn merchandise trade deficit with China during the six-month period.
In practical terms, Nigeria imported about N10.11 worth of goods from China for every N1 worth of goods it exported to the country.
Nigeria’s exports to China represented only about 2.26 per cent of its N48.19tn total exports during the period.
China’s dominance was even more significant when Nigeria’s trade with Asia was considered.
Nigeria imported goods worth N7.55tn from Asia in Q1 and N8.56tn in Q2, bringing total imports from the region to N16.12tn in the first half of 2026.
China alone accounted for 68.34 per cent of those imports.
Asia supplied 55.45 per cent of Nigeria’s total imports in Q1, with its share rising to 59.37 per cent in Q2.
The surge in Chinese imports comes amid renewed concerns over counterfeit and substandard products in the Nigerian market.
Public concern over fake goods has intensified, with reports and social media discussions focusing on products including toothpastes, creams, bottled water and yoghurt drinks.
The Director of Investigation and Enforcement at the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Martins Iluyomade, said the agency had uncovered what it described as a new trend involving some Chinese counterfeiters operating in Nigeria.
According to him, some operators identify popular products in Nigeria, arrange for their replication and then use logistics networks to distribute the counterfeit goods.
He said the practice differed from an earlier model in which Nigerian counterfeiters travelled to China to arrange production.
Iluyomade also alleged that some of the counterfeiters owned logistics companies used to bring the fake products into Nigeria, prompting NAFDAC to shut down logistics firms allegedly connected to the distribution networks.
However, the report does not suggest that the N11.01tn worth of Chinese imports were counterfeit. Rather, the scale of the trade highlights the size of the supply chain requiring regulatory oversight.
The growing importance of China also coincided with a rise in Nigeria’s manufactured goods imports.
Manufactured goods imports stood at N8.48tn in Q1 2026, representing a 12.94 per cent increase from N7.51tn recorded in Q1 2025.
The figure climbed to N9.51tn in Q2, up 20.65 per cent from N7.88tn in Q2 2025 and 12.10 per cent from Q1 2026.
Nigeria consequently imported about N18tn worth of manufactured goods during the first six months of 2026, equivalent to 64.16 per cent of its total import bill.
NAFDAC has intensified enforcement against counterfeit and substandard products, particularly fake medicines, food products, cosmetics and other regulated goods.
The agency said it secured 64 convictions for counterfeiting offences between June 2025 and June 2026, while enforcement operations resulted in the seizure and destruction of large quantities of unregistered and counterfeit products.
NAFDAC Director-General, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, also disclosed that the agency had seized or destroyed more than N1.54tn worth of fake and substandard regulated products nationwide since 2023.
Operators in the organised private sector have warned that counterfeiting is hurting legitimate manufacturers by reducing sales, discouraging investment and forcing genuine businesses to compete with cheaper imitation products.
The Vice Chairman of the Lagos Chapter of the National Association of Small-Scale Industrialists, Peter Popoola, said counterfeit goods were damaging legitimate brands and contributing to job losses.
He called for government-backed grants and low-interest financing to help genuine manufacturers expand production and make their products more competitive.
The Chief Executive Officer of Spectra Industries Limited, Duro Kuteyi, similarly linked the growing appeal of counterfeit products to declining household purchasing power.
He urged consumers to pay attention to signs that could indicate that products are fake, including poor labelling and other noticeable differences in packaging and quality.
