Boost petrol exports to curb inflation, LCCI tells FG

• Published On: 15 February 2025 at 19:35

The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry has urged the federal government to increase local crude oil refining and petrol exports in order to reduce inflation and strengthen the naira.

This was revealed in an interview by the President of the LCCI, Gabriel Idahosa, on Saturday

Idahosa stated that Nigeria's N54.99 trillion 2025 budget is insufficient to achieve its broader economic goals, such as a $1 trillion economy by 2030 and lowering inflation from a record 34.8% to 15%.

"None of the budget either this year or next year will be enough to achieve the broad targets of growing the economy," Mr. Idahosa said. "This budget is just one of several steps towards that ultimate objective."

He emphasized that, while the government's 15% inflation target is ambitious, it can be met through disciplined policies, particularly in the foreign exchange market.

"Some of the targets have been considered ambitious, like the inflation reduction of inflation targets," according to Idahosa. "Many observers believe that it is quite ambitious and will be difficult to achieve.

"The government has set a very challenging target for reducing inflation. So we'll see how they do it. Everyone hopes they will be able to achieve it."

He urged the government to stabilize the exchange rate at N1,300, stating, "If they can reduce the stable exchange rate from N1,500 to about N1,400 or N1,300 as the sustainable new exchange rate benchmark, then you can see inflation coming down even more than their targets."

Idahosa emphasized the importance of increasing Nigeria's local refining and petroleum product exports in order to stabilize the exchange rate and reduce inflation.

"It is critical that we produce enough and export. The more refined petroleum products we export, the lower the exchange rate; typically, the dollar's price will fall," he explained.

According to the LCCI president, Nigeria will generate a foreign currency surplus as it increases refined product output and expands non-oil exports such as fertilizers and cement.

He emphasized the importance of the Dangote Refinery and the NNPC refineries in eliminating petrol imports and establishing Nigeria as a net exporter of refined petroleum products.

"We have the Dangote Refinery and the NNPC refineries, which will allow us to completely stop importing petrol. Overall, the surplus of extra foreign currency in the economy is growing as we produce more refined products and non-oil exports.

"We are already exporting, but we must ensure we stop importing petrol completely," according to him.