Nigeria Remains Top Africa’s Crude Producer Amidst Reduced Production – OPEC

Nigeria has maintained its position as the top African crude producer in November, according to data from the Monthly Oil Market Report for December.

The report which was published yesterday by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) showed that using secondary sources, Nigeria in November 2023 produced 1.370million barrels per day as against 1.388mbpd in October which is a decrease of 17,000bpd.

Libya produced 1,178mbpd in November, and 1.157mbpd in October, an increase of 21,000bpd. Angola supplied 1.168mbpd in October and 1.130mbpd, a decrease of 37,000bpd. Total OPEC production in October was 27.895mbpd and 27.837mbpd in November, a reduction of 57,000bpd.

But using communication, Nigeria’s production in October was 1.351mbpd and fell to 1.250mbpd in November (a decrease of 100,000bpd). Libya’s production in October was 1.188mbpd and 1.206mbpd in November (an increase of 19,000). Angola’s production in October was 1.147mbpd and 1.084 in November, a decrease of 63,000bpd.

OPEC said Nigeria’s economic growth in 3Q,23 exceeded expectations, registering a robust 3.1% year-on-year (y-o-y) increase, and surpassing the 2.6% y-o-y growth in 2Q23 and 2.4% y-o-y in 1Q23.

It said: “This positive performance is attributed to strong activity in the non-oil sectors, especially in services and agriculture. However, there are concerns about inflationary pressures in Nigeria, with the inflation rate reaching 27.3% y-o-y. This acceleration is largely attributed to persistent second-round effects following the removal of petrol subsidies and the devaluation of the naira.

“The current inflation rate compares to 26.7% y-o-y in September and 25.8% in August. The annual core inflation rate, excluding farm produce, rose to 22.7% y-o-y in October, compared to 22.1% in September and 21.5% in August.

Meanwhile, monthly consumer prices increased by 1.7% m-o-m in October, following a rise of 2.1% in September and a surge of 3.2% in August. The November Stanbic IBTC Bank of Nigeria PMI dropped to 48, compared to 49.1 in October and 51.1 in September, indicating a challenging economic situation.”