Nigeria’s economy expanded by 3.13 per cent year-on-year in real terms in the first quarter of 2025, according to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

This marks a notable improvement from the 2.27 per cent growth recorded in the same period of 2024, driven largely by strong performances in the services and industry sectors.

In nominal terms, GDP rose to N94.05 trillion in Q1 2025, up from N79.51 trillion in Q1 2024, representing an 18.30 per cent year-on-year increase.

The report read, “Gross Domestic Product grew by 3.13 per cent (year-on-year) in real terms in the first quarter of 2025. This growth rate is higher than the 2.27 per cent recorded in the first quarter of 2024.”

The latest figures come on the heels of the successful rebasing of Nigeria’s national accounts to 2019 prices, replacing the previous 2010 base year.

According to the NBS, the update was necessary to provide a more accurate and up-to-date reflection of the economy’s structure.

The services sector remained the largest contributor to economic output in Q1 2025, recording a year-on-year growth of 4.33 per cent and accounting for 57.50 per cent of real GDP.

Telecommunications and Information Services stood out once again, growing by 7.40 per cent in real terms and contributing 10.59 per cent to GDP, up from 10.17 per cent in Q1 2024.

The Finance and Insurance sector also posted strong growth of 15.03 per cent, supported by digital innovation, increased financial inclusion, and greater operational efficiency across banks and fintech firms.

Trade, Real Estate, and Transportation sectors also recorded positive growth in Q1 2025.

Trade expanded by 1.78 per cent, contributing 18.21 per cent to GDP, while the Real Estate sector grew by 4.61 per cent . The Transportation sector saw a significant increase of 14.08 per cent, driven by strong performance across all its sub-sectors—road, rail, air, water, and pipelines.

The industry sector posted a year-on-year growth of 3.42 per cent in Q1 2025, up from 2.35 per cent in the same period of 2024.

Oil production averaged 1.62 million barrels per day (mbpd), rising from 1.57 mbpd in Q1 2024.

However, this increase did not translate into stronger real growth, as the oil sector’s real GDP growth slowed to 1.87 per cent, down from 4.71 per cent a year earlier. Its contribution to total GDP also edged down to 3.97 per cent, compared to 4.02 per cent in Q1 2024.