Nigeria spends N3.25 trillion more on importing armoured vehicles than petrol in Q4 2023 

Nigeria’s import expenditure on armoured vehicles has significantly surpassed that on fuel in the final quarter of 2023, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). 

This development is likely due to the worsening security situation in the country. 

The latest foreign trade report by the NBS noted that Nigeria spent over N5.06 trillion on the importation of armoured vehicles, dwarfing the N1.81 trillion spent on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol.

This is a difference of N3.25 trillion in Q4 2023. 

The total import bill for Nigeria in Q4 2023 reached N14.108 trillion, marking a 56.04% increase from the previous quarter and a substantial 163.08% surge from the same quarter in 2022. This significant uptick in imports is largely attributed to the massive investment in armoured vehicles during the period. 

In fact, armoured vehicles emerged as the predominant category of imports, accounting for 35.87% of the total import value, followed by ordinary motor spirit and gas oil, which accounted for 12.81% and 8.48%, respectively. 

Also, the value of imported manufactured goods rose to N9.026 trillion in the quarter under review, with increases of 128.12% and 268.76% compared to Q3 2023 and Q4 2022, respectively. This rise was significantly influenced by the import of armoured vehicles from Singapore. 

Singapore stood out as the primary source of these imports, with a staggering contribution of approximately N5.06 trillion. This vast majority overshadows the contributions from other countries, which were only in the millions of naira: