ABSTRACT
Shares of Racial Groups in Direct Importing In West Africa the first stage in the import trade, that is, direct importing, is largely in non-African hands. From information extracted by the Department of Statistics in Nigeria from customs records it appears that in 1949 about 85 per cent of the import trade of that country was handled by European firms, about 10 per cent by Levantine and Indian firms, and about 5 per cent by African firms. Since then the African share has probably increased slightly, partly as a result of preferential treatment in the allocation of import licences in the commodities affected by specific licensing.
