Steel prices in Nigeria — what was actually paid in 2024

Nigeria imports almost all of its flat steel, and the mix leans heavily towards thin roofing gauges and galvanized coil. That mix lifts the reported price per tonne while keeping the cost per square metre low, which is the single most common misreading of Nigerian steel data. Port throughput at Apapa and Tin Can Island, not sea freight, usually sets the delivery date.

No survey, no index: Nigeria declared these values and tonnages, and the division is ours. How it is done and where it breaks down →

• 381,399 tsteel imported (2024)
• 9,386 tsteel exported
• Net importer372,013 t short

Imports

Exports

What the Nigeria numbers say

• The dearest heading is welded hollow section, square and rectangular at 2,316 USD per tonne, the cheapest narrow coated strip at 572, 4.0× apart. Thin roofing gauges pull the coated average up per tonne even though the cost per square metre is low.
• Import tonnage is dominated by Hot-rolled coil and plate at 33 %, exactly the profile of a market building roofs faster than factories.
• Sourcing is concentrated: China supplies 98 % of the five largest lanes.
• On wire rod there is 698 USD paid against 383 received, a 315 USD difference that in this market should be read alongside port and clearing costs.

Buying and selling into Nigeria

• Nigeria imports almost all of its flat steel and most of its sections. Lagos (Apapa and Tin Can Island) takes the bulk of the volume, with Onne serving the east; port congestion, not sea freight, is usually what sets the delivery date.
• SONCAP is mandatory: a Product Certificate followed by a SONCAP Certificate issued before shipment, against inspection at origin. Shipping without it means the cargo cannot clear.
• Payment is commonly a confirmed letter of credit, and foreign-exchange availability rather than price is frequently the binding constraint on order size.
• Roofing sheet in 0.30–0.45 mm and galvanized coil dominate the flat-product mix, which pulls the average unit value below what a European market would show for the same heading.

Main supplying countries

Hot-rolled coil and plate (HS 7208)

Angles, shapes and sections (HS 7216)

Coated sheet (galvanized and painted) (HS 7210)

Welded tube, circular, non-alloy (HS 730630)

Other markets