Business

WTO X-rays Impacts of Trump’s Tariffs on Global Trade

WTO members must stand together to safeguard these gains.Trade measures of this magnitude have the potential to create significant trade diversion effects.

Published

1 year ago

April 7, 2025

OCHEFA

762 Views

Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Director-General of the WTO has acknowledged that President Donald Trump’s Tariffs slammed on more than a hundred countries, will have substantial implications for global trade and economic growth prospects of member nations .

In a position statement on the U.S. tariffs, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said:

“The WTO Secretariat is closely monitoring and analysing the measures announced by the United States on April 2, 2025.

Many members have reached out to us and we are actively engaging with them in response to their questions about the potential impact on their economies and the global trading system.

While the situation is rapidly evolving, our initial estimates suggest that these measures, coupled with those introduced since the beginning of the year, could lead to an overall contraction of around 1% in global merchandise trade volumes this year, representing a downward revision of nearly four percentage points from previous projections.

I’m deeply concerned about this decline and the potential for escalation into a tariff war with a cycle of retaliatory measures that lead to further declines in trade.

It Is important to remember that, despite these new measures, the vast majority of global trade still flows under the WTO’s Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) terms.

Our estimates now indicate that this share currently stands at 74%, down from around 80% at the beginning of the year.

WTO members must stand together to safeguard these gains.Trade measures of this magnitude have the potential to create significant trade diversion effects.

I call on Members to manage the resulting pressures responsibly to prevent trade tensions from proliferating.

The WTO was established to serve precisely in moments like this — as a platform for dialogue, to prevent trade conflicts from escalating, and to support an open and predictable trading environment.

I encourage Members to utilize this forum to engage constructively and seek cooperative solutions.”

Related Topics:Featured WTO Directors-General WTO on Trump's Tariffs

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TCN improves Power Supply to Apapa corridors by additional 208MW

The upgrade replaces an outdoor transformer that had served as a stopgap after the original facility, commissioned in 1985, was decommissioned.

Published

1 day ago

August 18, 2026

OCHEFA

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The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Mr. Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz , says from now Apapa Causeway, Ijora, Amukoko, Ajegunle, Apapa Wharf, Tin Can Island and other major commercial areas, will be having improved power supply.

Abdulaziz made the declaration on Monday during the commission of Ijora and Apapa Road transmission substations in Lagos by additional 208MW .

The project is aimed at improving the volume and reliability of electricity available to distribution companies for onward supply to homes, businesses and industries.

Abdulaziz said that the projects, sponsored by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the World Bank respectively, in partnership with TCN, underscored the Federal Government’s commitment to modernising the transmission network and improving grid stability.

He commended the Ministry of Power, JICA, the Government of Japan, Lagos State Government and other stakeholders for supporting the projects, while appealing for additional grant assistance to upgrade other critical sections of the transmission network.

Speaking at the commissioning, Minister of Power, Mr. Joseph Tegbe, said that the projects were part of the Federal Government’s efforts to address longstanding transmission constraints and infrastructure decay that have limited the country’s ability to fully utilise available generation.

The upgrades increased the Ijora substation’s capacity by 112MW, from 90MVA to 230MVA, following the installation of two new 100MVA transformers.

At Apapa Road, a new Gas Insulated Substation (GIS) added another 96MW, raising the facility’s capacity from 60MVA to 180MVA.

The upgrade replaces an outdoor transformer that had served as a stopgap after the original facility, commissioned in 1985, was decommissioned.

Business

CBN’s Sidi-Ali wins 2026 overall Spokesperson of the Year Award, courtesy of NSA

Published

1 day ago

August 18, 2026

OCHEFA

33 Views

•Mrs Hakama Sidi Ali.

The Ag. Director of Corporate Communications of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mrs. Hakama Sidi-Ali, has won the 2026 edition of the National Spokespersons Award (NSA).

The recognition was announced during the 6th National Spokespersons Awards and the 4th Economic Confidential Annual Lecture, organised by Image Merchants Promotion Limited (IMPR), publishers of PRNigeria, Economic Confidential and Spokespersons Digest, held in Abuja, recently.

The organisers stated: “With the latest honour, Sidi-Ali completed an unprecedented hat-trick at the National Spokespersons Awards, becoming the first communications professional to progress from winning a sector-specific award twice consecutively to claiming the overall Spokesperson of the Year title.