Business news from Ukraine

Business news from Ukraine

Passenger car imports to Ukraine fell by 17% over seven months

25 August , 2026  

The volume of passenger car imports to Ukraine, including cargo-passenger vans and race cars (UKT ZED code 8703), amounted to $2.62 billion in January–July 2026, which is 17% less than the figure for the same period in 2025 ($3.16 billion).

According to statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine, in July alone, passenger car imports fell by 27.2% compared to July of last year—to $443.2 million, which is also 5.3% less than in June 2026.

The top three suppliers of passenger cars to Ukraine over the first seven months have consistently been the United States, Germany, and Japan, whereas in the previous year they were Germany, the United States, and China. Specifically, car shipments from the U.S. fell by 3.2% to $508.3 million, those from Germany decreased by 26% to $416.2 million, and imports from Japan totaled $371.2 million, whereas last year, cars worth $407.7 million were imported from China.

Imports of passenger cars from other countries during this period totaled $1.33 billion—20.4% less than last year’s figure.
At the same time, over the seven-month period, Ukraine exported only $2 million worth of such vehicles, primarily to Georgia, the Czech Republic, and Kazakhstan, whereas last year, total exports to the UAE, the Czech Republic, and Poland amounted to $4.54 million.

Passenger cars accounted for 4.52% of Ukraine’s total imports of goods in January–July, compared to 6.89% during the same period last year; their share of total exports was 0.01% and 0.02%, respectively.
As previously reported, in 2025, passenger cars worth nearly $6.15 billion were imported into Ukraine, which is 40.2% more than in 2024. The top three exporters were the United States, Germany, and China. Car exports totaled $10.1 million (2.7 times less).

The significant increase in passenger car imports to Ukraine starting in the summer of 2025 was driven by news that VAT exemptions on electric vehicle imports would be abolished as of January 1, 2026; as a result, imports have declined significantly since the beginning of this year. However, starting in March, a slow but steady recovery of the passenger car market—including electric vehicles—began.

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