South Korea’s vehicle production rose by 11.8pc to 323,644 units in April 2021 compared to the same year-ago month, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. The jump is attributed to economic recovery in Q2 2021 compared to the same quarter last year, which was affected by COVID-19 restrictions.
Domestic vehicle sales, however, dropped by 3.8pc to 161,097 units in April against the same year-ago month. Around 84pc or 135,146 units sold were domestic vehicles while the remaining 16.1pc or 25,951 units were imported cars. Domestic vehicles sold dropped by 6.3pc while imports climbed by 12.1pc.
South Korea’s auto exports climbed by 52.8pc to 188,293 units in April with the value of exports leaping further by 73.4pc to $4.15bn against the year-ago month.
Exports to North America rose by 66.4pc to $19bn last month, while exports to the EU grew by 89.8pc to $840mn, both compared to April 2020. Exports to the rest of Europe, Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Oceania, grew between 52.5-296.6pc while exports to the Middle East fell by 10.2pc in April against the year-ago month.
South Korea’s green-car sales increased by 44.4pc to 32,838 units in April 2021 compared to the same month last year.