Boost for Korean car industry

South Korea’s automotive industry is on the up, with production, sales and exports of its vehicles surging in September 2020, when compared to the same month of the previous year.

The number of vehicles manufactured by Korean carmakers increased by 23.2 per cent and domestic sales of those cars climbed by 22.2 per cent, according to data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

Exports of Korean vehicles also saw gains for the first time since the outbreak of Covid-19. Carmakers sent 193,081 units overseas last month, a 14.8 per cent increase from September 2019.

Previously, car exports had dropped year-on-year by 44.6 per cent in April, 57.5 per cent in May, 40.1 per cent in June, 9.2 per cent in July and 19.5 per cent in August.

Sales of locally-manufactured cars hit 137,771 in September as sales of other marques are still struggling in the wake of the coronavirus, reports The Korea Herald.

Only 24,945 cars from German and Japanese brands were sold during the month, a drop of 9.7 per cent from the same month a year ago.

The ministry says the growing popularity of SUVs and newly released models have buoyed domestic sales and production. 

The five bestselling cars in September were all Korean, with Hyundai’s Grandeur, pictured, topping the list.