High Exchange Rates : Importers Abandon Thousands Of Tokunbo Cars At Seaport – Customs Laments

High Exchange Rates : Vehicle Importers abandon thousands of Tokunbo cars at seaport – Customs laments.

Said the number of vehicles throughput in 2018 was 32,000 – compared to just 4,000 units in 2023.

Customs area controller, Tin Can Island Command, made this known when members of ANLCA paid him a courtesy visit.

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Tuesday, has lamented the abandonment of thousands of imported fairly used vehicles (Tokunbo) at the Seaport by importers due to the rise in foreign exchange rates.

The Customs area controller, Tin Can Island Command, Compt. Dera Nnadi, stated this when members of the Association of Nigerian Licenced Customs Agents (ANLCA) paid him a courtesy visit.

Nnadi stated that the number of vehicles throughput had continued to dwindle from 32,000 vehicles in 2018 to as low as 6,000 in 2022 and a mere 4,000 units in 2023.

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“There are several vehicles abandoned in the port because the owners are unable to clear them due to high exchange rates.

“‘Why did you import when you don’t have money to clear’, I asked, but somebody reminded me that the vehicles were imported believing that they were going to exchange money at N420 and suddenly, it is N770 and the owners in America abandoned them saying, ‘we can’t clear them, let them remain there’”.

“As of 2018 to 2021, vehicle throughput here was at the peak of 32,000 vehicles a year. It started dropping as from 2020, by 2022, it dropped to as low as 6,000, in 2023, it is 4,000 units,” he lamented.

Nnadi cited other factors militating against trade and revenue generation at the command to include drop in vehicle importation, high exchange rate as well as the trade policies of the past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele.

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