January Vehicle Production, Sales, and Exports All Show Triple Decline... Impact of COVID-19

Asia Economy DB=Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] Last month, South Korea's automobile industry experienced a decline in production, domestic sales, and exports, failing to escape a slump.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 15th, automobile production last month decreased by 29.0% year-on-year to 251,573 units due to fewer working days caused by the Lunar New Year holidays and partial strikes at some companies.

In the case of Hyundai Motor Company, production of some new models such as the Palisade, Venue, and GV80 increased, but overall production fell by 19.6% year-on-year due to reduced working days and adjustments in truck production volume.

Kia Motors saw a 27.9% decrease compared to the same month last year due to production disruptions from partial strikes, fewer working days, and sluggish exports of compact cars.

Domestic automobile sales dropped by 14.7% from January last year, selling 116,153 units. The decline was largely influenced by fewer business days, the end of the individual consumption tax reduction, and the impact of COVID-19.

Despite new model launches, domestic car sales decreased by 15.9% to 98,755 units due to fewer business days. Imported car sales fell by 7.0% to 17,398 units. German brands increased by 7.3% due to new models from Audi and Volkswagen, but Japanese brands declined by 64.8%.

Automobile exports last month fell by 28.1% year-on-year to 150,974 units. This was mainly due to partial strikes at some companies, fewer working days, suspension of exports by Korea GM to Europe, and reduced consignment production and export volumes of Renault Samsung's Rogue.

However, exports of high value-added vehicles such as SUVs including the Palisade and Trailblazer, as well as eco-friendly vehicles, helped limit the decrease in export value to 22.2%.

By region, exports to Asia, Africa, and Latin America continued to decline due to delayed economic recovery, but exports to the Middle East increased due to rising demand from Saudi Arabia.

Automobile parts exports in January recorded $1.74 billion, down 15.0% year-on-year, affected by global market contraction caused by China's economic slowdown, Brexit concerns in Europe, and the US-China trade dispute.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.