'Record-Breaking Best Sales Ever' BMW... August's No.1 Imported Car Sales

BMW Sold 7,252 Units in August... First Place Among Imported Cars in 2 Years and 8 Months
"Thanks to the Popularity of the X Series and Partial Resolution of Delivery Delays"
Total New Registrations of Imported Cars 21,894 Units... 20% Increase YoY

BMW New X5 (Photo by BMW Korea)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] BMW has achieved its highest-ever sales since entering the domestic market, reclaiming the top spot in the imported car market after 2 years and 8 months.

According to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) on the 3rd, BMW sold 7,252 units domestically last month, ranking first in the overall imported car market. This is the highest record since BMW Korea was established in 1995. It is also the second time monthly sales have surpassed 7,000 units since March 2018 (7,052 units). Mercedes-Benz recorded 6,030 units, about 1,000 units fewer than BMW, placing second.

BMW Korea stated, "The X series models, centered on the X5 and X6, showed overall strong sales," adding, "The improvement in delivery delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic since August was a key factor." They also added, "For popular models, the waiting period from contract to delivery can be up to one year, but thanks to customers' patience, sales were able to follow."

BMW's return to first place is the first time in 2 years and 8 months since December 2017. BMW, which had annual sales close to 60,000 units in 2017, saw its upward trend falter after a large-scale recall in the summer of 2018. The impact continued until last year, with the average monthly sales dropping below 4,000 units in 2019 from about 5,000 units in 2017. However, the atmosphere has clearly changed this year. The cumulative sales from January to August this year reached 36,498 units, a 40% increase compared to the same period last year, showing recovery from adverse conditions.

Meanwhile, the total number of newly registered imported passenger cars last month was 21,894 units, a 20.8% increase compared to the same period last year. Imported car sales, which had fallen below 20,000 units last July due to the reduction of individual consumption tax benefits and supply shortages, rebounded in one month to exceed 20,000 units. Accordingly, the total cumulative sales also increased by 15.7% to 169,908 units compared to last year (146,889 units).

By brand, following BMW and Mercedes-Benz were Audi with 2,022 units, Mini with 1,107 units, Volkswagen with 881 units, and Lexus with 703 units. Thanks to the strong performance of BMW and Mercedes-Benz, sales of German brands surged, resulting in a market share of 86.5% for European brands last month. The slump of Japanese cars continued. Japanese brands sold only 1,413 units last month, dropping their market share to the 6% range.

The best-selling imported car model was the BMW 520. BMW ranked three models in the top 10 sales: 520 (1,097 units, 1st), 520d (727 units, 3rd), and 530 (547 units, 6th). Mercedes-Benz also had six models on the list, including the A220 sedan, GLE 300d 4MATIC, AMG G63, and E200d.

Im Han-gyu, Vice Chairman of KAIDA, said, "Despite an overall shortage of supply, the new registrations of imported passenger cars in August increased compared to the previous month due to the resolution of waiting demand for some brands."

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