Premier Li Qiang met with Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene in Shanghai on Tuesday.
The Mongolian prime minister is in the Chinese city to attend the seventh China International Import Expo (CIIE) that opened on the same day.
Li noted that last month, President Xi Jinping and Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh exchanged congratulatory messages celebrating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relationship between China and Mongolia, with both leaders agreeing to continue working together to promote steady and long-term development of bilateral relations.
China is willing to work with Mongolia to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, under the guidance of the building of a China-Mongolia community with a shared future, carry forward the traditional friendship, consolidate political mutual trust, and deepen practical cooperation in trade and investment, border connectivity, high technology and other fields, so as to continuously improve the well-being of the people of both countries, said Li. Oyun-Erdene noted that this year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relationship between Mongolia and China. Mongolia looks forward to deepening mutually beneficial cooperation with China in areas of economics and trade, ports and infrastructure, while exploring new growth points of cooperation and enhancing cultural exchanges, he said.
After the meeting, the two leaders attended a ceremony displaying the two countries' cooperation documents in green development, infrastructure, and other areas.
Premier Li meets Mongolian PM in Shanghai
The renewal of the currency swap agreement between China and Nigeria will enhance bilateral trade and help strengthen Nigeria's local economy, said a Nigerian economist.
At the end of December, China's central bank said that it had renewed a bilateral currency swap agreement with the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The total value of the agreement is 15 billion yuan (about 2.09 billion U.S. dollars), or 3.28 trillion Nigerian naira, the People's Bank of China said in a statement.
The agreement is valid for three years and can be renewed upon mutual consent, according to the statement.
The renewed currency swap agreement allows direct naira-to-yuan payments, cutting costs and easing the financial burden for importers like Martines Tochi.
For eight years, Tochi has relied on China for the supply of electrical cables, lighting equipment, and conductors.
Like many Nigerian traders, he once faced challenges in sourcing foreign exchange to pay suppliers
"Sincerely, we've been sourcing dollars from the black market. And we have been facing serious difficulties in sourcing them. Now, you're not going to source here in Nigeria, so it's a good development, a very good development to us," said Tochi.
Economists see this renewed agreement as a pathway to further strengthen the naira and expand bilateral trade.
"That's a very good opportunity for Nigeria to increase its trade volume with China, and it's one of the things that can help also, strengthen the local economy going by the kind of materials or goods that Nigeria imports from China -- electronics, machineries, equipment and what a view, which are essential for boosting industry, for enhancing the growth of our manufacturing sector and creating jobs in Nigeria at large," said Isaac Botti, an economist.
Nigeria is China's third largest trading partner in Africa, with bilateral trade amounting to 22.56 billion US dollars in 2023.
Renewal of currency swap deal boosts trade between China, Nigeria: economist
