Nigeria’s Passenger Vehicle Imports Surge in 2025 as FX Stability Boosts Auto Trade
Story: written by Myra December 15,2025
Nigeria recorded a strong recovery in passenger vehicle imports in 2025, driven largely by improved stability in the foreign exchange market, which eased cost pressures on auto dealers and buyers, official trade figures have shown.
Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that the value of passenger car imports reached ₦1.01 trillion within the first nine months of 2025, compared to ₦894.09 billion recorded during the same period in 2024. This represents an increase of ₦113.15 billion, translating to a year-on-year growth of approximately 12.7 per cent.
The figures indicate that the rebound was largely powered by a strong performance in the second half of the year, following sluggish activity earlier in 2025 caused by currency fluctuations and rising import costs.
In the first quarter of 2025, passenger car imports stood at ₦224.58 billion, reflecting a 5.9 per cent decline from ₦238.73 billion in the corresponding quarter of 2024. The slowdown persisted in the second quarter, with imports falling to ₦254.67 billion from ₦291.93 billion, marking a contraction of nearly 13 per cent.
However, the trend shifted sharply in the third quarter. Between July and September, the value of passenger car imports surged to ₦527.98 billion, up from ₦363.42 billion in the same period of the previous year — a jump of about 45 per cent. This strong third-quarter performance more than compensated for earlier declines and lifted total imports for the nine-month period.
Country-level data showed that the United States maintained its position as Nigeria’s leading source of imported passenger vehicles. In the first quarter of 2025, imports of used diesel and semi-diesel vehicles with engine capacities above 2,500cc from the US were valued at ₦93.51 billion. This rose to ₦99.18 billion in the second quarter and climbed sharply to ₦184.21 billion in the third quarter.
Additional vehicle imports from the US included models with engine capacities ranging between 1,500cc and 2,500cc, valued at ₦38.15 billion in the third quarter alone.
South Africa ranked as the second-largest source of imported passenger cars during the first half of the year, supplying vehicles worth ₦25.84 billion in the first quarter and ₦21.43 billion in the second. Imports from other African countries such as Angola, Liberia and Equatorial Guinea remained relatively low.
The United Arab Emirates also emerged as a notable source in the third quarter, with vehicle imports valued at ₦13.67 billion, alongside ₦12.68 billion worth of petrol-powered vehicles imported in completely knocked-down (CKD) form.
Overall, passenger vehicles imported from the United States were valued at approximately ₦415.05 billion in the first nine months of 2025, accounting for just over 41 per cent of Nigeria’s total passenger car imports. South Africa contributed about ₦47.27 billion, or 4.7 per cent, while the UAE accounted for roughly ₦26.35 billion, representing 2.6 per cent.
Although imports in the first half of 2025 were ₦51.41 billion lower than in the same period of 2024, the robust rebound in the third quarter — which exceeded its 2024 equivalent by ₦164.56 billion — pushed overall passenger car imports firmly higher.
