That dollar amount results from a -19.2% decline from $1.25 billion 5 years earlier in 2020 but a 115.6% year-over-year acceleration compared to $467.4 million during 2023.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2024, Niger uses the West African CFA franc which depreciated by -4.9% against the US dollar since 2020 but remained stable from 2023 to 2024. Niger’s weaker local currency compared to 2020 makes its exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers starting with American currency.
The 3 biggest exported products from Niger are crude oil, processed petroleum oils and piston engine parts. Combined, that trio of leading exported goods represent well over four-fifths (89.7%) of Niger’s overall export revenues. Such a high percentage indicates a concentrated set of exported goods.
Niger’s Major Trading Partners
The latest available country-specific data shows that 97.6% of products exported from Niger was bought by importers in: Singapore (30.1% of Niger’s total), Malaysia (28.7%), Togo (9.4%), Chad (9%), mainland China (8.3%), Burkina Faso (3.3%), Nigeria (2.6%), Mali (2.5%), Libya (1.7%), Ghana (1.1%), Benin (0.6%) and United Arab Emirates (0.4%).
From a continental perspective, 68.1% of Niger’s exports by value was delivered to Asia countries while 31.5% was sold to importers in fellow African countries.
Niger shipped another 0.3% worth of goods to customers in Europe.
Tinier percentages went to buyers in North America’s United States and Canada (0.17%), Latin America’s Cuba and Haiti (0.04%) then Oceania’s Australia only (0.003%).
Given Niger’s population of 28.1 million people, its total $1 billion in 2024 exports translates to roughly $36 for every resident in the northwest African country. That dollar metric surpasses the average $17 per capita one year earlier during 2023.
Niger’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Nigerien global shipments during 2024, based at the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Niger.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$886.8 million (88.0% of total exports)
- Machinery including computers: $38.6 million (3.8%)
- Vegetables: $17.2 million (1.7%)
- Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: $9.1 million (0.9%)
- Live animals: $8.1 million (0.8%)
- Vehicles: $6.6 million (0.7%)
- Books, newspapers, pictures: $6.4 million (0.6%)
- Optical, technical, medical apparatus: $6.3 million (0.6%)
- Gems, precious metals: $4.2 million (0.4%)
- Oil seeds: $3.7 million (0.4%)
Niger’s top 10 export categories accounted for 97.9% of the overall value of its global shipments.
Books, newspapers and pictures represent the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 641,900% from 2023 to 2024.
In second place for improving export sales was mineral fuels including oil via a 930.9% advance.
Niger’s shipments of salt, sulphur, stone and cement posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 756.1%.
The lone decliner among Niger’s top 10 export categories was gems and precious metals, recording a -96.2% year-over-year drop.
At the more detailed four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, Niger’s most valuable exported goods in 2024 were crude oil at 74.3% of its global total. In second place were processed petroleum oils (13.7%), piston engine parts (1.7%), onions and shallots (1.1%), heavy machinery including bulldozers, excavators and road rollers (0.9%), hydraulic cements (also 0.9%), live bovine cattle (0.7%), printed matter (0.6%), dried shelled vegetables (0.6%), surveying, hydro and weather instruments (also 0.6%).
Products Generating Niger’s Best Trade Surpluses
The following types of Nigerien product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.
In a nutshell, net exports represent the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$694.4 million (Reversing a -$142 million deficit in 2023)
- Vegetables: $11.9 million (Down by -6% since 2023)
- Live animals: $8 million (Up by 99.2%)
- Gems, precious metals: $3.4 million (Down by -96.9%)
- Books, newspapers, pictures: $1.5 million (Reversing a -$3.3 million deficit)
- Oil seeds: $1.1 million (Down by -18.5%)
- Cocoa: $150,000 (Reversing a -$358,000 deficit)
- Live trees, plants, cut flowers: $21,000 (Up by 162.5%)
Niger has highly positive net exports in the international trade under the ores, slag and ash product category, notably for uranium or thorium ores and concentrates.
Products Causing Niger’s Worst Trade Deficits
Overall Niger incurred a -US$493.4 million trade deficit for 2024, slowing by -81.5% from -$2.67 billion in red ink one year earlier in 2023.
Below are exports from Niger that result in the greatest negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Niger’s goods trail Nigerien importer spending on foreign products.
- Cereals: -US$251.5 million (Down by -18.7% since 2023)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$128.2 million (Up by 39.6%)
- Vehicles: -$94.5 million (Down by -27.3%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$82.9 million (Down by -65.4%)
- Miscellaneous food preparations: -$65.8 million (Up by 47.8%)
- Miscellaneous textiles, worn clothing: -$61.4 million (Up by 172.1%)
- Cereal/milk preparations: -$56.3 million (Up by 9%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: -$53.5 million (Down by -22.2%)
- Machinery including computers: -$36.2 million (Down by -91%)
- Articles of iron or steel: -$32.9 million (Down by -87.4%)
Niger has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits for rice and, to a much lesser extent, corn under the cereals product category.
Nigerien Export Companies
Not one Nigerien corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia lists export-related companies from Niger. Selected examples are shown below.
- Air Niamey (airliner)
- COMINAK (uranium mining)
- SONIDEP (oil, gas)
- SONITEL (telecommunications)
In macroeconomic terms, Niger’s total exported goods represent 1.8% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2024 ($55.8 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 1.8% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2024 surpasses the 1.1% for 2023. Those percentages suggest a relatively increasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Niger’s total economic performance, albeit based on relatively short timeframe.
Another key indicator of an economy’s health is its unemployment rate. Niger’s unemployment rate averaged 0.4% for 2024, down from an average 0.5% for 2023.
Niger’s capital city is Niamey.
See also France’s Top Trading Partners and Nigeria’s Top 10 Exports
Research Sources:
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on November 18, 2025
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Databases (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on November 18, 2025
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on November 18, 2025
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on November 18, 2025
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Niger. Accessed on November 18, 2025