Car imports on the up

There were 9,527 used passenger vehicles imported last month as the number of units crossing our borders increased by 22.8 per cent from 7,756 units a year ago.

The latest tally was also up by 21.8 per cent from May this year when 7,825 units came into the country, according to figures from Customs NZ. 

The year-to-date total for 2026 is now 46,684 – a rise of 11.1 per cent from 42,014 at the same time last year.

Some 9,307 units were imported from Japan in June for a 97.7 per cent share of the market. Australia was next with 149 units, followed by Singapore on 25. 

As for used light commercials, 248 crossed the border last month. This was down 10.5 per cent from 277 units in the same month last year but up by 43.4 per cent when compared with May’s total of 173.

The year-to-date total for this sector now stands at 1,595 units, a jump of 49.1 per cent from 1,070 a year ago.

Japan main source

As for new passenger vehicles, some 9,300 units were brought into New Zealand last month. 

This was a 10.8 per cent rise from 8,391 units in June last year and a 14.6 per cent increase from 8,115 in May this year.

June’s tally means 46,249 vehicles have crossed the border so far in 2026, which is up 18.9 per cent from 38,909 units for the same period a year ago.

Japan was the main country of export with 4,413 units, followed by Thailand with 1,381, China on 1,209, South Korea with 1,096 and the US on 327.

For new light commercials, 1,971 units were imported in June, a drop of 32.2 per cent from 2,908 a year ago. 

However, the latest figure was up by 32.1 per cent compared with 1,492 units in May.

The year-to-date total is now 12,064, which is down 9.6 per cent from 13,340 for the same period in 2025.

Overall, 21,371 vehicles, including trucks and buses, entered the country in June. This was up from 18,154 in the previous month.