Economy
LCCI Advises Nigeria to Reconsider Foreign Policy Mix
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has suggested a tweak to Nigeria’s foreign policy mix to avoid being left behind in international trade and global affairs.
This advice was given by LCCI President, Mr Gabriel Idahosa, at the LCCI 2025 third quarter news conference on Wednesday in Lagos, stressing that the call is pertinent in the light of recent global trade and geopolitical dynamics.
Mr Idahosa noted that with Nigeria’s recent alignment with BRICS, it must wisely choose its trade partners and global alignments to avoid negative consequences.
BRICS is an intergovernmental organisation comprising 10 countries – Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (BRICS).
The LCCI president said that in the second quarter of 2025, the global economy was weakened by the United States’ tariffs, trade tensions, geopolitical unrest, and uncertainty.
He said that with the current escalating tariff wars between the United States and the European Union, and the US and BRICS member countries and partners, global trade was expected to reach an all-time low.
“In the face of continued tariff crises and uncertainty, we must pay more attention to seriously supporting non-oil exports to more favourable destinations as we recalibrate our trade partnerships.
“With about 3,000 products now permitted to enter the United Kingdom at very favourable terms in a new policy shift, and just as the U.S. continues to announce more tariffs on Nigerian exports to the USA, it is time to support targeted exporters to increase our foreign earnings,” he said.
Mr Idahosa advised that with President Donald Trump’s extra 10 per cent tariff on Nigeria due to its alignment with BRICS, the country should adopt a multi-pronged policy response that would safeguard its national interest.
He said the approach must also assert the country’s development priorities, while avoiding being caught in great power rivalries.
“We recommend that the government engage in bilateral dialogue with the U.S. to discuss concerns and reaffirm Nigeria’s strategic importance as a West African leader and key partner.
“The negotiation should focus on sector-specific exemptions from the tariff, emphasising non-oil sector exports.
“Nigeria must pursue a non-aligned, interest-driven foreign policy by positioning BRICS membership as a vehicle for economic cooperation and not political alignment.
“Also, emphasis should be on Nigeria’s sovereign right to pursue partnerships that address its development needs, especially in areas like infrastructure, energy transition, and digital inclusion,” he said.
Mr Idahosa projected that the global economic outlook for the quarter showed a range of risks.
He said that further trade fragmentation, including new tariff hikes and retaliatory actions, could intensify the growth slowdown and trigger significant disruptions in cross-border supply chains.
He said in the period under review, global spending on defence was expected to rise to meet contemporary security concerns.
Mr Idahosa added that the outlook for inflation remained vulnerable to external shocks, including spillovers from trade tensions and heightened financial and commodity price volatility.
According to him, central banks will be pressured to slow, pause, or reverse their monetary easing cycles.
He said that near-term budget pressures from debt service costs and military spending would be compounded in the long run by persistent costs associated with climate mitigation, adaptation, and population ageing.
The LCCI president also urged Nigeria to strengthen regional and South-South trade by expanding trade within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
This, he said, would reduce overdependence on Western markets.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is seeking a reduction in import duty exemptions, which rose to N34 trillion, limiting its ability to increase its revenue generation threshold.
The Comptroller-General of the Customs Service, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the value of import duty exemption certificate approvals increased to that level in 2025, describing the policy as one of the major factors restricting its revenue generation.
At an investigative session of the Senate Committee on Finance with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja on Monday, Mr Adeniyi explained that government fiscal policies have continued to impact the revenue-generating capacity of the Customs Service, both positively and negatively.
“The NCS would have generated significantly higher revenue over the years if not for government-approved import duty waivers and other external factors affecting collections,” he said.
He added that the Import Duty Exemption Certificate scheme, introduced in March 2020, accounted for about N34 trillion in approvals in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent covering duty-free importation of military hardware due to Nigeria’s prevailing security challenges.
Other government-backed duty waivers, he noted, covered the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment and medical supplies, industrial machinery and manufacturing inputs, as well as food import intervention programmes.
While acknowledging the impact of the waivers on Customs revenue, Mr Adeniyi argued that fiscal policy should not be assessed solely on the basis of revenue generation but also on its broader economic and social objectives.
He, however, urged the federal government to establish stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure beneficiaries of duty waivers deliver the intended economic outcomes, including lower consumer prices, increased local production and improved healthcare access.
The committee also expressed displeasure over the absence of several heads of government agencies invited to the hearing, including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), and the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Mr Sani Musa, warned that the affected chief executives must appear at the committee’s next sitting or face severe sanctions under the Senate’s rules.
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By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.40 per cent on Monday, July 13, buoyed by buying interest in 11 Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and UBN Property Plc, which offset the profit-taking in Food Concepts Plc, the parent company of Chicken Republic.
11 Plc gained N20.69 to end at N227.64 per share compared with last Friday’s price of N206.95 per share, CSCS Plc grew by N1.83 to N91.48 per unit from N89.65 per unit, and UBN Property Plc added 1 Kobo to sell at N1.81 per share versus N1.80 per share.
On the flip side, Food Concepts Plc depreciated by 24 Kobo to close at N2.45 per unit, in contrast to the preceding session’s N2.69 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation increased by N9.2 billion to N2.587 trillion from N2.578 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) improved by 15.33 points to 4,311.67 points from 4,296.34 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by investors surged by 615.9 per cent to 9.1 million units from the previous 1.3 million units, and the value of securities rose by 997.1 per cent to N320.4 million from the preceding session’s N29.2 million, while the number of deals decreased by 12.5 per cent to 28 deals from last Friday’s 32 deals.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units exchanged for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
