LixNi0.97-xFe0.03 nanofibers with different Li doping concentration have been synthesized by electrospinning method. The phase composition and microstructure analysis show that Fe and Li doping has no influence on the phase structure and morphology of NiO nanofibers, which reveal that the doped Fe and Li have been incorporated into the NiO host lattice. All the Li and Fe co-doped NiO nanofiber samples show obvious room-temperature ferromagnetic properties. The saturation magnetization can be enhanced with increase of the Li doping concentration. This phenomenon can be ascribed to the fact that the hole doping makes ferromagnetic coupling interactions between the holes and localized Fe 3d states more efficient. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4768907]