Nigerian Vehicle Market in 2025 shows impressive growth. Full-year figures gained 47.1% with Innoson rising 369.8% into 1st, overtaking Toyota which fell in 2nd. Notably, GAC skyrocketed in 3rd while Hyundai left the Top 5.
Economic Environment
In 2026, Nigeria enters a period of relative macroeconomic stability, with GDP growth projected to rise to around 4.3–4.4%, up from about 4.0% in 2025, following a sharp easing of inflation and improved foreign-exchange conditions. Headline inflation has fallen dramatically from peaks above 34% to around 14.5% by late 2025, the naira has stabilised near ₦1,436/$ with a narrow parallel-market gap, and external reserves have strengthened to over $45 billion, restoring investor confidence and calming financial markets. However, this stabilisation has come at a high cost, with very tight monetary policy, interest rates near 27.5%, and fiscal reforms constraining domestic credit, private consumption, and job creation. Growth remains narrowly concentrated in capital-intensive sectors such as oil, finance, insurance, ICT and real estate, while labour-absorbing sectors like agriculture and manufacturing continue to underperform due to insecurity, high energy and logistics costs, and longstanding structural bottlenecks.
As a result, poverty levels have continued to rise and household demand remains weak, highlighting a disconnect between improved macro indicators and lived economic conditions. Looking ahead, Nigeria’s challenge is to convert stability into inclusive growth by broadening the sectoral base, addressing insecurity and infrastructure gaps, and enabling productivity gains in agriculture and manufacturing so that economic growth translates into higher incomes and employment.
Automotive Industry Trend and Outlook
The Nigerian vehicle market shows impressive growth in 2025, keeping double-digit gains throughout the whole year. Overal, year-on-year volume surged by 47.1%.
Brand-wise, Innoson became new leader with a share of 37.3% (+369.8%), followed in 2nd by Innoson down 5.4%. GAC climbed 22 spots in 3rd, growing 5150%.
Notably, Hyundai abandoned the rankings, down 2 spots into 6th.
EV Market Trend and Outlook
Nigeria’s EV market is undergoing a structural shift. While still a limited share of the tota, localized produciton and policy support resulted in the sector growing 11.4% in 2025.
The EV leader was Volkswagen holding more than half of the segment. Kia followed in 2nd while GAC ranked 3rd.
Medium-Term Market Trend
The Nigerian vehicle market began in 2014 with 52,789 units, coinciding with the launch of the Nigerian Automotive Industry Development Plan, a policy modeled after Brazil’s, compelling automakers to establish local production in order to operate in the country. Despite issuing nearly 30 licenses over the next two years, the market collapsed by 68.5%, dropping to just 10,446 units in 2017 due to the oil price crash and weakening domestic demand.
A recovery began in 2018, with sales rising 68.7% to 17,625 units, prompting some manufacturers to open small local assembly plants. However, this was short-lived—sales declined by 20.5% in 2019, reaching the second-lowest level in a decade. The pandemic in 2020 dealt another blow, as lockdowns and a renewed oil slump caused a 34.7% drop in sales.
Since 2021, the market has shown steady, albeit modest, growth: up 25.9% in 2021, and rising for three consecutive years, culminating in 13,320 units sold in 2023 (+23.5%), the best performance in four years. The positive trend continued into 2024, with a 15.6% increase, though overall volumes remain low for Africa’s most populous nation.
