Business
Global trade grew $300bn in the first half of 2025 – UNCTAD
The shift was driven by a 14% surge in United States imports and a 6% jump in European Union exports.
Image: Ocean economy/UNCTAD
Global trade expanded by an estimated $300 billion in the first half of 2025, growing at an estimated 1.5% in the first quarter and projections showing 2% growth in the second.
UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) disclosed this in its just released Global Trade Update (July 2025).
Said the report:
Price increases contributed to the overall rise in trade value. Prices for traded goods edged up in the first quarter and likely continued to rise in the second, while trade volumes grew by just 1%.
Developed economies outpaced developing countries in the first quarter of 2025, reversing recent trends that had favoured the Global South. The shift was driven by a 14% surge in United States imports and a 6% jump in European Union exports.
Trade imbalances widened during the last four quarters, with the US posting a larger deficit, while China and the European Union recorded growing surpluses.
The report further said that global trade faces mounting headwinds in the second half of 2025, amid persistent policy uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and signs of slowing global growth.
BLACK MARKET RATES
US Dollar (USD) Buy ₦1,410 Sell ₦1,420
Great British Pound (GBP) Buy ₦1,890 Sell: ₦1,910
EURO (EUR) Buy ₦1,580 Sell ₦1,605
Canadian Dollar (CAD) Buy ₦1,020 Sell ₦1,080
South African Rand (ZAR) Buy ₦75 Sell ₦90
Ghana Cedi (GHS) Buy ₦95 Sell ₦110
West African CFA Buy ₦2, 300 Sell ₦2, 400
Central African CFA Buy ₦2,150 Sell 2,250
CBN Exchange Rates
US Dollar (USD) ₦1,357. 61
Great British Pound (GBP) ₦1,840.10
EURO (EUR) ₦1,571.70
Swiss Franc (CHF) ₦1,673.58
Chinese Yuan (CNY) ₦201.37
West African CFA (XOF) ₦2. 39
West African Unit Account (WAUA) ₦1,853.65
Saudi Riyal (SAR) ₦361. 59
South African Rand (ZAR) ₦83.85
BLACK MARKET RATES
US DOLLAR (USD) Buy ₦1,416 Sell ₦1,423
GREAT BRITISH POUND (GBP) Buy ₦1,890 Sell: ₦1,910
EURO (EUR) Buy ₦1,590 Sell ₦1,610
CANADIAN DOLLAR (CAD) Buy ₦1,020 Sell ₦1,080
SOUTH AFRICAN RAND (ZAR) Buy ₦75 Sell ₦90
UAE DIRHAM Buy ₦350 Sell ₦370 CHINESE YUAN Buy ₦190 Sell ₦205
GHANA CEDI (GHS) Buy ₦95 Sell ₦110
WEST AFRICAN CFA Buy ₦2, 300 Sell ₦2, 400
CENTRAL AFRICAN CFA Buy ₦2,150 Sell 2,250
AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR Buy ₦800 Sell ₦900
CBN Exchange Rates
US DOLLAR (USD) ₦1,357. 65
GREAT BRITISH POUND (GBP) ₦1,834.04
EURO (EUR) ₦1,567.00
SWISS FRANC (CHF) ₦1,671. 98
JAPANESE YEN (JPN) ₦8.53
CHINESE YUAN (CNY) ₦201. 34
WEST AFRICAN CFA (XOF) ₦2. 39
WEST AFRICAN UNIT ACCOUNT (WAUA) ₦1,858.02
SAUDI RIYAL (SAR) ₦361.62
SOUTH AFRICAN RAND (ZAR) ₦84.23
Business
Traders shut down Enugu ‘s Obollo-Afor market over N25,000 haulage levy
However, Chairman of ESIRS, Emmanuel Nnamani, in a letter to the traders, said the haulage levy was not paid by traders buying or selling goods in the markets, but was applicable strictly to truck drivers plying interstate routes.
All shops and markets at Obollo-Afor, Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State were shut yesterday, as traders staged a peaceful protest against alleged selective collection of a N25,000 haulage levy in the market.
The traders, who locked their shops and took to the streets in large numbers, carried placards with various inscriptions, alleging that the Enugu State Internal Revenue Service (ESIRS) had singled out Obollo-Afor Market for the collection of N25,000 haulage fee on every truckload of goods loaded or offloaded in the market.
However, Chairman of ESIRS, Emmanuel Nnamani, in a letter to the traders, said the haulage levy was not paid by traders buying or selling goods in the markets, but was applicable strictly to truck drivers plying interstate routes.
Addressing officials of the Udenu Local Government Council at the council secretariat, where the protesters marched to present their grievances, Chairman, Obollo-Afor Market Traders Association, Charles Eze, lamented that truck operators bringing foodstuffs, building materials, and other commodities to the market had stopped coming because of the levy.
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