According to news reports, current exchange rates and customs import duty on cargo clearance continue to account for the continued drop in vehicle importation into the country by 60 per cent.
Imports dropped from 45,000 between January and June 2023 to 18,000 between January and June 2024, representing a 60 per cent drop. Other factors responsible, it was gathered, were high import duty and taxes for used vehicles, and imposition of Import levy on used cars among others.
The exchange rate for the clearance of imported cargoes at the seaports stands at N1,512.21 per dollar while the official exchange rate closes at N1,509.67 at the NAFEM. Confirming the drop in vehicle importation, the GM, Port and Terminal Multiservice Limited (PTML), Tunde Keshinro, also attributed it to the restriction of rebate on ex-factory prices used for assessment of import duty to 10 instead of 12 years. Keshinro stated that the law allowed the importation of 12-year-old vehicles into the country but vehicle units above 10 years of age are currently forced to pay higher import duty.
PTML is a foremost roll-on-roll-off (RoRo) terminal in Nigeria, handling between 65 to 70 per cent of vehicles imported into the country. “For the period between January and June 2023, PTML terminal handled about 45,000 vehicle units while the year 2024 of the same period saw a record reduction in volume of less than 18,000 units.
If PTML handles 65-70 per cent of Lagos port vehicle import traffic, you can project the figures with an additional 30 or 40 per cent to have the idea of total imports of RoRo units into Lagos ports within the periods under review,” Keshinro stated.
