Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate in real terms increased by 3.46 percent in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024, compared to the same period in the previous year. This growth rate is 0.92 percentage points higher than the 2.54 percent recorded in Q3 2023, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Additionally, the growth rate is 0.27 percentage points higher than the 3.19 percent recorded in the second quarter (Q2) of 2024. This indicates an improvement in economic performance compared to both Q3 2023 and Q2 2024. The Services sector was the main driver of the economy during this period, achieving a growth rate of 5.19 percent and contributing 53.58 percent to the overall GDP.
The total economic activity in real terms for Q3 2024 was ₦20,115,766.93 million, surpassing the figures recorded in Q2 2024, which stood at ₦18,285,019.24 million, as well as the ₦19,442,281.18 million recorded in Q3 2023. This underscores an increase in production levels compared to the previous quarters.
In nominal terms, the aggregate GDP reached ₦71,131,091.07 million in Q3 2024, showing a year-on-year nominal growth rate of 17.26 percent compared to ₦60,658,600.37 million in Q3 2023. This quarter also outperformed the preceding quarter, Q2 2024, which recorded ₦60,930,000.58 million. The main sectors contributing to GDP growth in real terms for Q3 2024 included Crop Production (26.51 percent), Trade (14.78 percent), Telecommunications (13.94 percent), Crude Petroleum (5.57 percent), and Real Estate (5.43 percent).
In terms of broad economic classifications—Agriculture, Industry, and Services—the Agricultural Sector grew by 1.14 percent in Q3 2024, which is a slight decline from 1.30 percent in Q3 2023. The Industry sector experienced a growth of 2.18 percent in Q3 2024, marking an improvement from the 0.46 percent recorded in Q3 2023. Meanwhile, the Services sector grew by 5.19 percent, up from 3.99 percent in Q3 2023.
The contributions of the main economic sectors for Q3 2024 were 28.65 percent from Agriculture, 17.77 percent from Industry, and 53.58 percent from Services. The contributions from Agriculture and Industry were lower than in Q3 2023 by 0.66 percent and 0.22 percent, respectively, while the Services sector contributed significantly more, exceeding its contribution from the same period in 2023 by 0.88 percentage points.
Further analysis of oil and non-oil sectors revealed that oil GDP grew by 5.17 percent in Q3 2024, an improvement from -0.85 percent in Q3 2023, although less than the 10.15 percent recorded in Q2 2024. The oil sector accounted for 5.57 percent of total GDP during this reporting quarter. In Q3 2024, the average daily oil production was 1.47 million barrels per day (mbpd), which is an increase from the daily average of 1.45 mbpd in Q3 2023 and higher than the 1.41 mbpd in Q2 2024.
In real terms, the non-oil sector contributed 94.43 percent to the GDP in Q3 2024, reflecting a slight decrease compared to 94.52 percent in the same period of 2023 but an increase from 94.30 percent in Q2 2024. The improved performance of the non-oil sector in Q3 2024 can be attributed to growth in key areas such as Crop Production in Agriculture, Trade, Telecommunications, and Real Estate within the Services sector.