On Tuesday, the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) reported that sales of imported cars in South Korea decreased by 2.1 percent in August compared to the same month the previous year. This decline was attributed to a shortage of some models.
The three most popular models sold in August were the BMW 520 sedan, Mercedes-Benz E 250 sedan, and Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4MATIC SUV. During this period, the combined sales of Volkswagen Group Korea, BMW Group Korea, and Mercedes-Benz Korea totaled 16,971 units, a 1.7 percent drop from 17,273 a year ago.
German cars accounted for 73 percent of imported cars sold in South Korea last month, up from 71 percent in the prior year. Meanwhile, the sales of three Japanese brands–Honda Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp., and Lexus–jumped 33 percent from 1,451 to 1,929 units.
In July, imported vehicles comprised 18.31 percent of the Korean passenger vehicle market, down from 21.86 percent a year earlier. The market share of imported cars for August has yet to be released, according to KAIDA.
BMW’s 10 millionth 520d sedan is seen in this undated file photo provided by BMW. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
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