Business

China’s Imports From Nigeria Rise 22.5% In Q3’23 – Chinese Consul General

Published

2 years ago

December 27, 2023

Editor

Chinese Consul General in Lagos, Ms. Yan Yuqing

The People’s Republic of China imports from Nigeria rose by 25 percent in the third quarter of 2023.

This according to stakeholders is an indication of positive bilateral trade between both countries.

This came even as the Chinese Consul General in Lagos, Ms. Yan Yuqing, reinstated that China’s firmly supports African countries in exploring development paths, and cooperation in poverty reduction, and promotion of modernization of agriculture.

In a statement made available to Vanguard, Yuqing said: “China and Nigeria have built nice cooperation mechanism, broad cooperation platform, while practical cooperation in various fields are deepening and expanding.

Exciting results have been achieved in economic and trade cooperation.

“In the first three quarters of 2023, China-Nigeria bilateral trade reached USD 17.25 billion, and China’s imports from Nigeria increased by 22.5 per cent.

“With the opening of Lekki Deep Sea Port and the first phase of Lagos Blue Line Light Railway constructed by Chinese enterprises, economic and social development in Nigeria is being promoted.”

She noted that the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Lagos, would like to extend sincere New Year wishes to friends from all walks of life in the consular area at this wonderful moment.

She said: “I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to you all for great contributions to the development of China-Africa, and China-Nigeria relations!

“2023 bears historical significance for the development of China-Africa relations, marking the 10th anniversary of President Xi Jinping’s proposal to promote the concept of building a Global Community of Shared Future, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and the principles guiding China’s Africa policy, including sincerity, real results, amity and good faith.

“We work together with our African friends and draw strength from the China-Africa friendship and cooperation.

“Since 2013, China has helped construct more than 6,000 km of railways, 6,000km of roads and 80 large-scale power facilities in Africa. A series of landmark projects keep emerging one after another, such as the Mombasa–Nairobi Railway, Nigeria’s Lekki Deep Sea Port and the headquarters of the African Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“Chinese enterprises have built more than half of the wireless stations and high-speed mobile broadband networks in Africa, laying more than 200,000 km of optical fiber and serving more than 900 million African people.

“China is Africa’s largest trading partner, contributing more than 20 percent to Africa’s economic growth, by 2022, China-Africa trade reached $282 billion, accounting for 20 percent of Africa’s total foreign trade.

“China’s FDI stock in Africa exceeds $47 billion, 1.8 times the 2013 figure.

“China firmly supports African countries in exploring development paths suited to their own conditions, cooperates with African countries in poverty reduction, and promotes the modernization of African agriculture. China has built more than a dozen of Luban workshops in Africa, vigorously promoting the development and innovation of vocational education in Africa.

“China has built 25 economic and trade cooperation zones with Nigeria and other African countries to promote industrialization in Africa. China also supports Africa in implementing the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, works for a synergy between the BRI and Agenda 2063 of the African Union and the development strategies of various countries.

“These efforts bring us into a new phase of building a high-level China-Africa community with a shared future. 2023 is a year of in-depth development of China-Nigeria relationship.”

Business

Naira Depreciates Against Dollar

Published

2 days ago

July 4, 2025

Editor

The Naira experienced a slight depreciation on Friday at the official market, trading at N1,528.56 to the dollar.

Data obtained from the website of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that the Naira lost N2.73.

This represents a 0.17 percent loss compared to the N1,525.82 recorded on Thursday.

The Naira, which opened the week on Monday with a gain of N9.52 against the dollar, held steady gains until Thursday.

On Wednesday, the local currency gained N3.42 against the dollar and received commendation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The IMF, in its 2025 Article IV Consultation report on Nigeria, commended the CBN for its reforms to the foreign exchange market, which supported price discovery and liquidity.

Business

JUST IN: Dangote Refinery Hikes Petrol Ex-depot Price

Published

2 weeks ago

June 20, 2025

Editor

Nigerians may soon pay more for petrol as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery on Friday increased its ex-depot price for Premium Motor Spirit to N880 per litre, raising fresh concerns over fuel affordability and price volatility in the downstream sector.

Checks on petroleumprice.ng, a platform tracking daily product prices, and a Pro Forma Invoice seen by The PUNCH confirmed the hike, representing a N55 increase from the previous rate of N825 per litre.

The increment would ripple across the entire fuel distribution chain, likely pushing pump prices above N900/litre in some parts of the country, especially in areas far from the distribution hubs.

The hike comes despite global crude prices falling. Brent crude dipped by 3.02% to $76.47, WTI fell to $74.93, and Murban dropped to $76.97 on Friday. The decline in benchmarks offers little relief due to persistent fears of sudden supply disruptions.

The refinery has increased its reliance on imported U.S. crude and operational costs amid exchange rate instability, which adds to its pricing pressure.

On Thursday, the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said his 650,000-barrel capacity refinery is “increasingly” relying on the United States for crude oil.

This came as findings showed that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery is projected to import a total of 17.65 million barrels of crude oil between April and July 2025, beginning with about 3.65 million barrels already delivered in the past two months, amid ongoing allocations under the Federal Government’s naira-for-crude policy.

Dangote informed the Technical Committee of the One-Stop Shop for the sale of crude and refined products in naira initiative that the refinery was still battling crude shortages, which had led it to resort to imports from the United States.

On Monday, the president of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, Festus Osifo, accused oil marketers of exploiting Nigerians through inflated petrol prices, insisting that the current pump price of PMS should range between N700 and N750 per litre.

He criticised the disparity between falling global crude oil prices and the stagnant retail price of petrol in Nigeria.

“If you go online and check the PLAT cost per cubic metre of PMS, convert that to litres and then to our Naira, you will see that with crude at around $60 per barrel, petrol should be retailing between N700 and N750 per litre.”

He asserted that if Nigerians bear the brunt of higher fuel costs, they should be allowed to enjoy the benefit of low pricing.

His forecast of increased costs now appears spot on, considering the latest developments.

Marketers are already adjusting. Depot owners and fuel distributors in Lagos and other cities anticipate a domino effect, with new price bands expected to follow Dangote’s lead.

Many had held back pricing decisions since Tuesday, when the refinery halted sales and withheld fresh PFIs. The delay fueled speculation, allowing opportunistic price hikes across various depots.

Business

Naira Appreciates At Official Market

Published

1 month ago

May 24, 2025

Editor

The Naira, which has seen steady appreciation against the Dollar all week, closed stronger on Friday, trading at ₦1,580.44 in the official forex market.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s website show the Naira gained ₦4.51k against the Dollar on Friday alone.

This marks a 0.28 per cent appreciation from Thursday’s closing rate of ₦1,584.95 in the official foreign exchange window.

The local currency maintained consistent strength throughout the week, recording gains daily.

On Monday, May 19, it traded at ₦1,598.68; on Tuesday, at ₦1,590.45; and on Wednesday, at ₦1,584.49.

These gains suggest increased investor confidence and improved forex supply, contributing to the naira’s performance.

Meanwhile, the CBN, at its 300th Monetary Policy Committee meeting held Monday and Tuesday, retained the Monetary Policy Rate at 27.5 per cent.