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Nigeria’s passenger car imports surged to N1.58 trillion in 2025, which shows a rebound in demand, though vehicles still accounted for a relatively small share of the country’s total import bill.
This was revealed in the new data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The figures reveal a 24.64% year-on-year increase from N1.26 trillion in 2024, and a 6.89% rise over 2023’s N1.47 trillion, highlighting a recovery after the decline seen in 2024. Despite the growth, passenger cars represented only 2.34% of Nigeria’s total imports, which reached N67.35 trillion in 2025. Total imports expanded by 11.14% YoY, up from N60.59 trillion in 2024, indicating that while car demand is rising, other import categories grew at a faster pace.
Analysis of import origins shows a clear dominance by the United States, particularly for used vehicles. In Q1 2025, Nigeria imported N93.51 billion worth of used cars from the US, far ahead of South Africa (N25.84 billion) and the United Arab Emirates (N8.48 billion). Canada, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom contributed N3.72 billion, N4.84 billion, and N2.81 billion respectively.
The US maintained its lead throughout 2025, with Q2 imports hitting N99.18 billion, Q3 surging to N184.21 billion for high-capacity diesel vehicles plus N38.15 billion for mid-range vehicles, and Q4 peaking at N197.90 billion. The United Arab Emirates, South Africa, and European countries contributed smaller but steady volumes, mainly for commercial and goods transport vehicles.
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The rise in vehicle imports is mirrored in broader Transport Equipment and Parts categories, which reached N6.54 trillion in 2025, a 37.07% YoY increase from N4.77 trillion in 2024, and more than double the N3.15 trillion recorded in 2023. Imports under “Vehicles, aircraft, and parts thereof; vessels, etc.” rose 31.84% YoY to N5.92 trillion, while other transport equipment climbed 55.99% YoY to N3.39 trillion, highlighting industrial and commercial transport as the main drivers of import growth.
Industrial transport equipment imports expanded 64.63% YoY to N2.66 trillion, while non-industrial transport equipment rose 30.92% YoY to N728.59 billion. Parts and accessories also grew 18.01% YoY to N1.57 trillion.
What this means: While passenger car imports are recovering, they remain a small fraction of total imports. The bulk of growth is concentrated in industrial and commercial transport equipment, reflecting rising demand for logistics, infrastructure, and production-related assets. Analysts suggest that Nigeria’s import expansion in 2025 was largely driven by economic activity and investment in supply-side assets, rather than consumer spending on personal vehicles.
The trend highlights the pivotal role of transport and logistics infrastructure in supporting Nigeria’s broader economic recovery, while highlighting the continued reliance on imported high-capacity vehicles and equipment to sustain industrial and commercial operations.
