Nigeria’s economy grows 4.23% in Q2, fastest pace in four years on higher oil output

Nigeria‘s economy expanded 4.23% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2025, its quickest pace in about four years, driven by higher oil production alongside stronger performances in industry and agriculture, official data showed on Monday.

The release by the National Bureau of Statistics is the second to reflect the recent rebasing of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which aims to better capture structural changes in Africa‘s most populous economy.

Nigeria’s average daily oil output between April and June stood at 1.68 million barrels per day (bpd), up from 1.41 million bpd in the same quarter of 2024. This pushed the oil sector to grow 20.46% year-on-year.

Agriculture grew 2.82% over the period, while industry expanded 7.45%.

Bismarck Rewane, a leading economist, said the stronger figures were partly explained by the rebasing exercise. “The rebasing of the GDP … has helped to reflect current economic realities,” he told Reuters.

President Bola Tinubu has been working to boost growth and strengthen public finances through subsidy cuts. Last month, he raised his annual growth target to 7%, up from the 6% goal he set when he took office in 2023.

Nigeria’s economy grew 3.13% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025. The last time quarterly GDP growth exceeded 4% was in 2021, according to LSEG data.