The Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria and Consul General of the People’s Republic of China, Yan Yuqing, estimated that bilateral commerce between Nigeria and China would be $22.6 billion in 2023.
The PUNCH reported that Nigeria has continued to be China’s third-largest trading partner in Africa, according to Yuqing.
She made this revelation in Lagos during the CMA CGM Scandola’s welcome ceremony. This container ship is the biggest to ever call at a Nigerian port.
According to reports, China’s main exports to Nigeria in November 2023 were woven fabric made of synthetic filament yarn ($160 million), insecticides ($84.1 million), women’s non-knit suits ($81.5 million), mobile phones ($67.2 million), and artificial hair ($59 million).
Petroleum gas ($95.8 million), crude petroleum ($71.5 million), zinc ore ($13.1 million), niobium, tantalum, vanadium, and zirconium ore ($13.5 million), and raw aluminium ($12.6 million) were China’s main imports from Nigeria in November 2023.
However, she stated that the $1.5 billion Lekki Port has been essential to increasing the amount of trade between Nigeria and China with the launch of the CMA/CGM West Africa Express service, which travels directly from China to Lagos.
The Chinese Customs Authority said that in 2023, the value of bilateral commerce between Nigeria and China was $22.6 billion. According to her, Nigeria is now China’s third-largest trading partner in Africa, while China continues to lead the world in trade.
Yuqing added that Nigeria’s export to China had also witnessed a year-on-year growth of about 50 per cent in 2023.
She said Nigeria was the ideal country to serve as a prototype for the Belt and Road Initiative, strengthening and stabilizing the China-Nigeria community with a shared destiny.
The cooperation between China and Nigeria is strengthened, in her opinion, by the arrival of CMA CGM Scandola at Lekki port, which has the capacity to transport 15,000 twenty-foot containers or similar units directly from China.
“The Lekki Deep Seaport is an important turning point in the excellent cooperative building of the Belt and Road, an initiative that supports the industrialization of Africa, between China and Nigeria.
She remarked, “We are happy to see it contributing positively to Nigeria’s national modernization growth.
The collaboration between China and Nigeria in the areas of roads, railways, airports, seaports, communication networks, and other infrastructure has advanced significantly in recent years.
