The Effects of International Commodities Trading on Economic Growth from a Developing Economy Perspective: An Evidence of Frequency Domain Causality and ARDL

The study aims to ascertain the effect of international commodity trade on economic growth in Nigeria. The paper used time series data from 1990 to 2021 from a secondary data source the World Bank database and the Central Bank of Nigeria. The study employed the ARDL bound test for co-integration and ARDL short-run and long-run for analysis, and the frequency domain causality, both the results for oil export and non-oil export are statistically significant at 0.05 frequency level, showing that Oil export and non-oil export showed a unidirectional causal effect on economic growth in Nigeria, and significant at the long, medium and short run respectively as well as the impact of international trade on the economic growth of Nigeria. The study showed that oil and non-oil exports had a positive and statistically significant relationship with economic growth. The paper bases its argument on the theories of dependence and structuralism. Thus, encouraging the diversification of Nigeria's economy and lessening the nation's reliance on commodity exports are required to foster sustainable economic development. Overall, this study contributes to the understanding of the effects of international commodities trading on economic growth and provides recommendations for policymakers and stakeholders to promote sustainable development in Nigeria and other developing countries.