National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says Nigeria recorded N1.41 trillion trade deficit between October and December of 2023.

On Friday, NBS made this known in its foreign trade report for the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2023.

In the period under review, Nigeria’s exports totalled N12.69 trillion, and total imports N14.11 trillion — which gives a trade deficit of N1.41 trillion.

A trade deficit is an economic indicator of a negative trade balance in which a nation’s imports outweigh its exports.

“In the fourth quarter of 2023, Nigeria’s total trade was N26,801.95 billion. Exports were valued at N12,693.62 billion, while imports amounted to N14,108.33 billion,” NBS said.

“On an annual basis, total trade was N71,880.01 billion, of which imports amounted to N35,917.62 billion, and exports were recorded at N35,962.39 billion.”

Compared to Q3 2023, exports rose by 22.68 percent quarter-on-quarter, from N10.35 trillion to N12.69 trillion in Q4 last year.

On a year-on-year basis, there was a 99.60 percent jump in export value compared to N6.36 trillion in Q4 2022.

Similarly, total imports rose by 56.04 percent quarter-on-quarter, compared to Q3 2023 (N9.04 trillion) and surged by 163.08 percent year-on-year (YoY) compared to Q4 2022 (N5.36 trillion).

In Q3 2023, Nigeria had a trade surplus of N1.31 trillion. This means the value of Nigeria’s exports (N10.35 trillion) was higher than imports (N9.04 trillion).

However, by Q4 2023, the situation reversed, with Nigeria’s trade recording a deficit, as the value of imports exceeded exports.

THE NETHERLANDS TOPS NIGERIA’S EXPORT DESTINATIONS IN Q3

Nigeria’s exports boomed in the fourth quarter of 2023, with the Netherlands, India, and Spain emerging as the top destinations. These three countries, along with Canada and France, accounted for nearly half (45.29 percent) of Nigeria’s total exports in Q4 last year.

“Further analysis on fourth-quarter trade by partners shows that the top five export destinations in Q4, 2023 were the Netherlands with ₦1,910.47 billion or 15.05%, India with ₦1,101.47 billion or 8.68%, Spain with ₦1,030.09 billion or 8.11%, Canada with ₦907.64 billion or 7.15%, and France with ₦799.77 billion or 6.30% of total exports,” NBS said.

“Altogether, exports to the top five countries amounted to 45.29% of the total value of exports.

“The largest exported product in the fourth quarter of 2023 was ‘Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude’ valued at ₦10,310.70 billion, representing 81.23%; this was followed by ‘Natural gas,’ with ₦1,015.84 billion accounting for 8.00%, and ‘Urea, whether or not in aqueous solution’ with ₦251.90 billion, or 1.98% of total exports.”

Singapore topped the list of Nigeria’s import partners in Q4 2023, accounting for a significant 36.09% (N5.09 trillion) of the total import value.

China remained a major player, coming in second with 14.61 percent (N2,06 trillion) worth of imported goods.

Rounding out the top five were Belgium, India, and the United States, collectively contributing over half (58.82 percent) of Nigeria’s imports in Q4.

The Cable

Gunmen suspected to be bandits on Thursday invaded some communities in Gwer East Local Government Area of Benue State and killed 16 people.

This happened barely 24 hours after rival militia groups unleashed terror on the Gbagir community in Ukum LG of the state leading to the death of no fewer than 40 people.

The latest attack, according to a source, happened on Thursday as the bandits embarked on a killing spree as they ransacked about 11 communities.

Sources revealed that the state deputy governor, Sam Ode and security chiefs in the state have gone on the spot assessment of the area.

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Benue State Command, Catherine Anene promised to get details of the incident as soon as the Commissioner of Police, Emmanuel Adesina, who had gone to the troubled area returned.

Punch

At least two worshippers were killed during Friday prayers at Anguwar Makera under Kwasakwasa Community in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The incident happened around 2 pm on Friday, according to locals in the area.

A community leader, Hudu Kwasakwasa, who confirmed the incident, said the bandits opened fire on the worshipers.

“The two worshipers killed were among other Muslims attacked at the Juma’at Mosque in Angwar Makera when the bandits opened fire on them and abducted others today (Friday). The victims have been buried at Old Kuyello cemetery,” he said.

He said the people were in the second raka’at of the salat when they were attacked, which forced the remaining people to run for their lives.

He added that a few days ago, the same bandits abducted about 9 people at a community called Angwar Kanawa under Kwasakwasa area.

He appealed for help from authorities concerned, saying the bandits were raiding the communities unchallenged.

The latest attack on the worshipers came less than 24 hours after bandits abducted over 287 students in the neighboring Chikun Local Government Area of the state.

The State Government and the Police Command are yet to react to the mosque incident as the Police Public Relations Officer, Mansir Hassan, couldn’t be reached on the phone and is yet to reply to a text message sent to him seeking clarification.

Daily Trust

A ship with Gaza aid is preparing to inaugurate a sea route from Cyprus to the war-ravaged strip

A ship bearing humanitarian aid was making preparations to leave Cyprus and head for Gaza, the European Commission president said Friday as international donors launched a sea corridor to supply the besieged territory that is facing widespread hunger after five months of war.

The opening of the corridor, along with the recent inauguration of airdrops of aid, showed increasing frustration with the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and a new international willingness to work around Israeli restrictions.

The vessel belonging to Spain’s Open Arms aid group will make a pilot voyage to test the corridor in the coming days, Ursula von der Leyen told reporters in Cyprus, where she’s inspecting preparations for it. The ship has been waiting at Cyprus’s port of Larnaca for permission to deliver food aid from World Central Kitchen, a U.S. charity founded by celebrity chef José Andrés.

Israel said Friday it welcomed the maritime corridor, but cautioned it would also need security checks.

“The Cypriot initiative will allow the increase of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, after a security check according to Israeli standards,” Lior Haiat, spokesperson for Israel’s foreign ministry, said on X, formerly Twitter.

The European Union, together with the United States, the United Arab Emirates and other involved countries were launching the sea route in response to the “humanitarian catastrophe” unfolding in Gaza, Von der Leyen said at a news conference with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides.

“The humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire, with innocent Palestinian families and children desperate for basic needs,” she said.

Open Arms founder Oscar Camps told The Associated Press the ship is scheduled to depart Saturday and would take two to three days to arrive at an undisclosed location where the group World Central Kitchen is constructing a pier to receive it. The group has 60 food kitchens throughout Gaza to distribute aid, he said.

The ship will pull a barge loaded with 200 tons of rice and flour close to the Gaza shore, he said. Pontoon boats will then be used for the complicated final leg to tow the barge up to the pier.

Camps said his group has been planning the delivery for two months, long before the EU Commission chief declared the launch of the safe corridor. He said he’s not as concerned about the security of the ship as “about the security and lives of the people who are in Gaza.”

“I don’t know if nations plan to do something bigger, but we are doing everything we can” with the group’s 3 million euros budget from private donations, Camps said.

In Brussels, commission spokesman Balazs Ujvari said the Open Arms ship’s direct route to Gaza raises a number of “logistical problems” which are still being worked out. He said United Nations agencies and the Red Cross will also play a role.

Efforts to set up a sea route for aid deliveries come amid mounting alarm over the spread of hunger among Gaza’s 2.3 million people. Hunger is most acute in northern Gaza, which has been isolated by Israeli forces for months and suffered long cutoffs of food supply deliveries.

On Thursday, President Joe Biden announced a plan to build a temporary pier in Gaza to help deliver aid, underscoring how the U.S. has to go around Israel, its main Mideast ally and the top recipient of U.S. military aid, to deliver aid to Gaza, including through airdrops that started last week. Israel accuses Hamas of commandeering some aid deliveries.

Aid officials have said that deliveries by sea and by air are far more costly and inefficient than sending trucks by land in getting the massive amounts of aid needed to people.

Five people in Gaza were killed and several others were injured when airdrops malfunctioned Friday and hit people and landed on homes, Palestinian officials said.

After months of warnings over the risk of famine in Gaza under Israel’s bombardment, offensives and siege, hospital doctors have reported 20 malnutrition-related deaths at two northern Gaza hospitals.

While reiterating his support for Israel, Biden used his State of the Union speech to reiterate demands that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu allow in more aid to Gaza.

“To the leadership of Israel, I say this: Humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip,” Biden declared before Congress. He also repeated calls for Israel to do more to protect civilians in the fighting, and to work toward Palestinian statehood as the only long-term solution to Israeli-Palestinian violence.

United States officials said it will likely be weeks before the Gaza pier is operational.

Aid groups have said their efforts to deliver desperately needed supplies to Gaza have been hampered because of the difficulty of coordinating with the Israeli military, the ongoing hostilities and the breakdown of public order. It is even more difficult to get aid to the isolated north.

Sigrid Kaag, the U.N. senior humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza, told reporters late Thursday that air and sea deliveries cannot make up for a shortage of supply routes on land.

Von der Leyen said the EU would continue exploring different ways of getting aid to Gaza. She said the bloc would consider “all other options, including airdrops, if our humanitarian partners on the ground consider this effective.”

Meanwhile, efforts to reach a cease-fire before Ramadan appeared stalled. Hamas said Thursday that its delegation had left Cairo, where talks were being held, until next week.

International mediators had hoped to alleviate some of the immediate crisis with a six-week cease-fire, which would have seen Hamas release some of the Israeli hostages it is holding, Israel release some Palestinian prisoners and aid groups be given access to get a major influx of assistance into Gaza.

Palestinian militants are believed to be holding around 100 hostages and the remains of 30 others captured during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, in which militants killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took some 250 hostages. Several dozen hostages were freed in a weeklong November truce, and about 30 are believed to be dead.

Gaza’s Health Ministry says at least 30,878 Palestinians have been killed. It does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its tallies but says women and children make up two-thirds of those killed. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government, maintains detailed records and its casualty figures from previous wars have largely matched those of the U.N. and independent experts.

Egyptian officials said Hamas has agreed to the main terms of such an agreement as a first stage but wants commitments that it will lead to an eventual more permanent cease-fire, while Israel wants to confine the negotiations to the more limited agreement.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the negotiations with media. Both officials said mediators are still pressing the two parties to soften their positions.

AP

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Ukraine to receive 6 bln euro from EU in next two months, PM says

Ukraine will receive 6 billion euros ($6.6 billion) from the European Union via its four-year Ukraine facility in the next two months, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Friday.

The government expects to receive 4.5 billion euros in March and another 1.5 billion euros in April, Shmyhal told a government meeting.

"This year, we aim to receive about 16 billion euros from the European Union. Ukraine will have the resources to fight and win. It is our key objective and we will do everything possible for it," Shmyhal said.

With the war against Russia now in its third year, Ukraine is critically dependent on economic and military support from its Western allies.

Billions in economic aid in the first two years of the war helped the government to maintain macroeconomic stability, tame inflation and ensure timely payments of pensions and public sector wages.

Ukraine channels most of its domestic budget revenues to fund its defence efforts.

Finance ministry data showed that Ukraine received about $73.6 billion in foreign financing in 2022 and 2023.

But in the first two months of this year, Kyiv received only $1.2 billion as major financing packages were delayed or blocked.

Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko has said the country needs about $3 billion a month to be able to get through 2024.

The government borrowed more from the domestic debt market and asked the state companies to make some obligatory budget payments in advance to meet spending needs in the first two months of the year.

The European Union eventually approved its four-year 50 billion euro financing program for Ukraine last month, military and economic aid from the United States remains stalled.

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

Ukrainian kamikaze drones kill two in Russia – governor

Two people have been killed and another severely wounded in a Ukrainian drone attack in Russia’s Belgorod Region, local governor Vyacheslav Gladkov has said.

The attack, which involved three kamikaze-drones, targeted the outskirts of the village of Rozhdestvenka, located near Russia’s border with Ukraine, Gladkov wrote in a post on Telegram on Friday.  

“As a result of the explosions, two people were killed and a third man was seriously injured,” he said.

An earthmover machine and some other construction equipment was damaged in the attack, according to the governor.

Earlier on Friday, Gladkov reported that a Ukrainian UAV had dropped an explosive device on a facility at an agricultural enterprise in the village of Maslova Pristan. The blast damaged the roof of the building but no human casualties resulted from this attack, he added.

At least five drones were shot down by air defenses in other parts of Belgorod Region earlier in the day, the governor said.

Throughout the conflict between Moscow and Kiev, Ukraine has been targeting Russian territory with drones almost on a daily basis.

This week the attacks were most intense on Wednesday, with incursions by UAVs reported in the Ukraine-bordering regions of Voronezh, Kursk, and Belgorod. Most of the drones were destroyed. However, in Kursk Region a strike by a UAV caused a fire at an oil depot.

On Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that a total of 796 Ukrainian drones have been shot down over the past week.

Reuters/RT

Two-time world champion Anthony Joshua knocked out mixed martial arts star Francis Ngannou in just the second round of their heavyweight clash in the early hours of Saturday.

Joshua had his Cameroonian opponent on the canvas in the first round and twice more in the second in a brutal and brief exhibition of punching power.

Ngannou, 37, a former UFC heavyweight champion, was taking part in only his second professional boxing match, having lost a split decision to Tyson Fury in an October fight that saw him put the WBC champion on the canvas in the third round.

“I thought this fight was something for the broadcasters to get behind,” Joshua told broadcaster DAZN after his quickfire victory.

“When I saw the fight with Tyson Fury, I thought, ‘I want some of that’. He is a great champion and this doesn’t take anything away from his capabilities.

“I told (Ngannou) not to leave boxing. He’s two fights in and he fought the best.”

Joshua, a former unified WBO, WBA and IBF heavyweight champion, went into the fight on the back of three successive wins.

Before that, however, he lost back-to-back fights to Oleksandr Usyk, who will fight Fury for the undisputed heavyweight title in Saudi Arabia in May.

The fight only got under way at 3:30 am local time (0030 GMT), but weary fans enjoyed a sensational start when Joshua quickly sent Ngannou to the canvas in the opening round with a brutal right to the chin.

It got worse for the Cameroonian when he was knocked down again in the second round, just managing to beat the count.

But his resistance lasted just a few more moments after he was sent to the canvas again for the third and final time.

He lay on his back for some time and needed medical treatment inside the ring before being helped back to his stool.

Joshua, 34, was reportedly being paid $50 million for his clash with Ngannou, whose rags-to-riches story had captivated the sport.

The MMA star grew up in abject poverty, working as a child labourer in a sand quarry for under $2 a day.

Ngannou then made his way to Europe, even sleeping rough in a car park in Paris before a local coach took him under his wing and guided him to boxing.

The Guardian

A Bangladeshi medical school teacher has been suspended after allegedly pulling out a firearm and shooting a student in the leg during a heated argument.

Raihan Sharif, a lecturer at a medical college in Sirajganj, north-western Bangladesh, has been suspended from his job two days after allegedly shooting and injuring a student in a classroom. Local media reported that the incident took place on Monday, while Sharif was conducting an oral exam. At some point, he got into an argument with 23-year-old student Arafat Amin Tomal, pulled out a gun, and shot the student in the right knee. Luckily for Tomal, the bullet hit the mobile phone he had in his pocket and prevented a potentially life-threatening injury, but he still wound up in the hospital and had to undergo surgery on his leg.

The Dhaka Tribune newspaper reports that there were 45 students in the classroom when the shooting occurred, many of whom rushed to help their colleague, locking Sharif in a room until police arrived. He was taken into custody and police seized the gun, as well as a second pistol, 81 bullets, four magazines, two knives, and 10 daggers which were found in the teacher’s bag.

In a police statement, it was revealed that Raihan Sharif was known for bringing firearms to school which he would often showcase to his students during classes.

News of Raihan Sharif suspension by the medical college sparked outrage in Bangladesh, with people voicing their outrage at the lecturer’s actions. Students at the college protested this week asking for a more severe punishment and his immediate dismissal.

The teacher remains in custody and police said that a special committee has been tasked with investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Oddity Central

A former CIA agent who served as an undercover spy for seven years has lifted the lid on the key signs that someone is lying to you and how you can become better at fabricating the truth.

Andrew Bustamante, 45, who worked as a captain in the Air Force before becoming an intelligence officer, opened up about his time in the Central Intelligence Agency in an episode of the podcast The Diary of a CEO, hosted by Steve Bartlett. 

The ex-spy dished on his extensive training, which involved him learning how to become a skilled liar - revealing that the CIA only recruits people who already have a natural talent for being dishonest. 

In the podcast, Andrew revealed how you can become a better liar while also sharing the signs that will tell you if someone is trying to manipulate you. 

Andrew began by explaining that you can't truly know if someone is lying unless you have known them long enough to establish a 'baseline,' which is known as their normal behavior. 

He added that in the CIA, learning about someone's baseline was known as spending 'time on target.' 

When dishing on being recruited into the agency, he said: 'It starts with a foundation of making sure to recruit people who are already liars.' 

He then began discussing the key details that can help you spot a bad liar. 

Andrew first said that someone who isn't good at being dishonest will run their mouth. 

'Bad liars talk a lot. Good liars talk a little, because the more you talk, the more you run the risk of undermining your own lie,' he explained.

He also shared that good liars will try to shift the conversation to make it about someone else, while bad liars will focus on themselves. 

He added: 'Bad liars make a lot of statements, good liars ask a lot of questions because if you ask questions, you’re not really disclosing anything about yourself. '

Andrew explained that if you have ever been in a social situation where there was somebody there that made you feel so interesting but you didn’t know anything about them, you were talking to a very good liar.

In addition to running their mouths, the former spy said that bad liars often can be spotted through their body language. 

He said: 'A skilled liar knows how to appear like they are telling the truth with their words and their body, whereas an unskilled liar often has a disconnect and their body will give a different message than what their mouth is.' 

Andrew noted that unskilled liars will struggle to sit still and keep twitching, like they are sitting in a 'hot seat.'

The former undercover spy also discussed the various tells that have been spread around on social media that are false. 

He explained that many think if someone moves their eyes around while speaking, they're lying. However, this isn't the case.

He said: 'You can’t actually tell if someone is lying to you based on where they place their eyes.'

Moving on to the habits of good liars, Andrew said that in addition to sitting still, asking questions and keeping their lies brief, a skilled deceiver will mirror the person they are trying to fool. 

'The first thing you do is you mimic the person,' he said.

He explained by mirroring the person you’re lying to they're more likely to believe and trust you. 

The ex-CIA agent also touched on how to get anything you want from someone - adding that people have four basic motivations, 'reward, ideology, coercion, and ego.' 

He noted that if you can speak to someone 'through the lens of their ideology,' you can get them to do anything you want. 

Daily Mail

Gunmen in Nigeria kidnapped more than 200 school pupils in the northern town of Kuriga on Thursday, a teacher, local councillor and parents of the missing children said, in the biggest mass abduction from a school since 2021.

Police in Kaduna state did not respond to requests for comment on the abductions, which happened shortly after morning assembly at the Local Government Education Authority School in the town of Kuriga.

"The number of the kidnapped from the secondary section based on the statistics we took together with the parents is 187 while that of the primary section is 40 for now," said Sani Abdullahi, a home economics teacher.

Local councillor for Kuriga Idris Maiallura said he had been to the school and said the gunmen initially took 100 primary schools pupils but later freed them while others escaped.

Parents and residents blamed the kidnapping on lack of security in the area.

Kaduna state Governor Uba Sani visited Kuriga and promised to get the students released, his office said, but did not say how many pupils were missing.

Amnesty International called on Nigerian authorities to safely rescue the students and hold perpetrators to account.

"We don't know what to do, we are all waiting to see what God can do. They are my only children I have on Earth," Fatima Usman, whose two children were among those abducted, told Reuters by telephone.

Another parent, Hassan Abdullahi, said local vigilantes had tried to repel the gunmen but had been overpowered.

"Seventeen of the students abducted are my children. I feel very sad that the government has neglected us completely in this area," Abdullahi said.

Kidnappings for ransom by armed men have become endemic in northern Nigeria, disrupting daily lives and keeping thousands of children from attending school.

The last major reported abduction involving school children in Kaduna was in July 2021 when gunmen took more than 150 students in a raid. The students were re-united months later with their families after they paid ransoms.

Reuters

A Nigerian Air Force Super Mushshak trainer aircraft was involved in "a minor mishap" on Thursday, but the two pilots on board survived the crash, the Air Force said.

The incident occurred at about 1335 GMT near a military airfield in the northern city of Kaduna as the plane was returning from a routine training flight, Air Force spokesperson Edward Gabkwet said in a statement.

Nigeria Air Force authorities have ordered a preliminary investigation to determine the immediate cause of the crash, the statement said. No further details were provided.

The crash follows a Nigerian Air Force MI-35P helicopter that went down in December and is the third such incident since July.

While Africa's largest economy has had a poor air safety record in the past, it has improved in recent years.

Reuters