Nigeria recorded a total passenger car import of N527 billion in the third quarter of 2025, more than double the N254 billion recorded in the same period in 2024.
The third quarter performance thus boosted the country’s import to N1 trillion worth of passenger cars in the first nine months of 2025, contributing more than half the 9 months performance.
This is as the country’s trade structure continues to adjust to the aftermath of exchange-rate liberalisation and a weaker naira.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) foreign trade reports show that passenger vehicle imports rose sharply year-on-year, even as higher import costs and inflation weigh on household purchasing power.
The increase forms part of a broader surge in imports recorded in the first nine months of 2025 compared with the same period last year.
Nigeria remains heavily dependent on foreign markets for vehicles, with the United States, Dubai and South Africa serving as the main import hubs for passenger cars entering the country.
Total value of Used Vehicles imported in the quarter hit N234.7 billion, with N184 billion of the figure imported from the United States.
What the data is saying
According to the NBS figures, total passenger vehicle imports reached N1 trillion between January and September 2025, up from N894 billion over the same period in 2024.
In dollar terms, this translates to about $689 million, assuming an average exchange rate of N1,450/$1.
The increase comes despite a moderation in annual imports last year, when total passenger car imports stood at N1.2 trillion in 2024, down from the record N1.4 trillion recorded in 2023.
- That 2023 peak coincided with the initial devaluation of the naira following the removal of exchange-rate controls, a move that sharply inflated the naira value of imports across multiple categories, including motor vehicles.
- Quarterly data for 2025 point to a renewed acceleration. Passenger car imports rose to N527 billion in the third quarter, more than double the N254.6 billion recorded in the first quarter and well above the N224.5 billion posted in the second quarter.
- The third-quarter figure represents the highest passenger vehicle import value for that period since at least 2020, highlighting the persistence of import demand despite higher FX costs.
- Historically, the single largest quarterly import bill for passenger vehicles was recorded in Q2 2023, when imports surged to N809.6 billion.
That quarter marked the immediate aftermath of exchange-rate unification, announced shortly after President Bola Tinubu assumed office, when the naira depreciated sharply, and import values were rapidly repriced.
Exchange rate effects are still dominant
The data suggests that the recent rise in passenger car imports is driven less by a surge in vehicle volumes and more by exchange-rate pass-through, as the weaker naira raises the local currency cost of imported vehicles.
Despite policy efforts to promote local vehicle assembly, Nigeria continues to import the bulk of its passenger cars, leaving the sector highly exposed to currency movements.
The persistence of elevated import values into 2025 indicates that demand for vehicles — whether for household use, commercial transport or ride-hailing fleets — has remained resilient even as prices climb.
