Nigerians spend N1.58tn on foreign cars as imports surge—NBS

By Abubakar Yunusa

Nigerians spent about N1.58tn importing passenger cars in 2025, reflecting a sharp rebound in vehicle demand despite the segment accounting for a modest share of the country’s overall import bill.

Data obtained from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that passenger motor car imports rose by 24.64 per cent year-on-year, increasing from N1.26tn recorded in 2024.

The figures also indicated a gradual recovery in demand, as imports grew by 6.89 per cent compared to the N1.47tn posted in 2023 following a decline witnessed in 2024.

However, passenger vehicles represented only 2.34 per cent of Nigeria’s total imports, which stood at N67.35tn in 2025.

Further analysis revealed that while demand for cars strengthened, it was overshadowed by faster growth across other import categories, as total imports expanded by 11.14 per cent from N60.59tn in the previous year.

A breakdown of the country’s vehicle import sources showed overwhelming dominance by the United States, particularly in the used vehicle segment, with import values rising steadily throughout the year.

In the first quarter of 2025 alone, Nigeria imported used vehicles worth N93.51bn from the United States, far exceeding imports from other countries.

South Africa followed distantly with N25.84bn, largely driven by goods transport vehicles rather than passenger cars, while the United Arab Emirates accounted for N8.48bn.

Other notable sources included Taiwan with N4.84bn, Canada at N3.72bn and the United Kingdom with N2.81bn within the same period.

The trend continued in the second quarter as imports from the United States climbed to N99.18bn, maintaining its clear lead.

During the period, the United Arab Emirates remained a key secondary source with N8.83bn, while imports from the United Kingdom, Belgium and Canada stood at N3.13bn, N3.12bn and N3.08bn respectively.

South Africa again featured prominently with N21.43bn in imports tied mainly to non-passenger vehicles.

By the third quarter, vehicle imports from the United States surged significantly to N184.21bn for high-capacity diesel vehicles, alongside an additional N38.15bn for mid-range engine vehicles.

Combined, total imports of US-origin vehicles exceeded N220bn in the quarter, widening the gap with other countries.

The United Arab Emirates followed at N13.67bn, while other categories such as completely knocked-down petrol vehicles contributed N12.68bn.

Imports peaked in the fourth quarter as vehicle inflows from the United States rose further to N197.90bn — the highest quarterly figure recorded in the year.

In the same period, the United Arab Emirates contributed N9.48bn, while Canada, the United Kingdom, Belgium and Italy recorded N6.27bn, N5.52bn, N4.95bn and N4.54bn respectively.

South Africa posted a combined N22.14bn across various goods transport vehicle categories.

Across the full year, the data underscored Nigeria’s heavy dependence on the United States for used high-engine-capacity vehicles.

Meanwhile, imports under the Transport Equipment and Parts category surged to N6.54tn in 2025, representing a 37.07 per cent increase from N4.77tn in 2024.

The figure is more than double the N3.15tn recorded in 2023 and accounted for 9.71 per cent of total imports, signalling its growing significance in Nigeria’s trade structure.

Similarly, imports classified under “Vehicles, aircraft and parts thereof; vessels etc.” rose by 31.84 per cent year-on-year to N5.92tn in 2025, up from N4.49tn in the previous year.

If you want, I can also write 2–3 alternative sharper PUNCH-style headlines or make the story more human-angle (e.g. impact on car prices, middle-class buyers, forex pressure, dealers’ reactions).