The United States has imposed a 12.5% tariff on imports from Nigeria, placing the country among 38 nations affected by a new round of trade measures aimed at addressing forced labour concerns and what Washington describes as unfair trade practices.
The new tariff, announced by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), will take effect from 12:01 a.m. EDT on Friday.
Nigeria joins countries including China, Brazil, Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam and Venezuela in the 12.5% tariff category.
The USTR said the new tariff framework will cover about 99.4% of U.S. imports. However, several strategic products including crude oil, natural gas, fertiliser and selected food items will remain exempt, reducing the immediate impact on some Nigerian exports.
The latest tariffs comes one day after president Donald Trump conveyed his appreciation for Nigeria’s security efforts in a letter to the presidency.
Nigeria’s inclusion follows Trump’s July 2025 announcement that countries aligning with what he described as the “anti-American policies of BRICS” could face additional trade restrictions.
Nigeria has strengthened its engagement with the BRICS bloc, whose members include Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Iran.
Although the 12.5% tariff is higher than the baseline 10% rate imposed on several U.S. trading partners, the overall impact on Nigeria’s exports will depend largely on the composition of shipments to the United States and whether they fall under the exempt product categories.
