"Korean-Origin Car Brand Approaches 8% Global Market Share Last Year"

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[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Last year, the global market share of Korean-origin vehicle brands approached 8%. This is interpreted as being influenced by the expansion of market share in advanced countries such as the United States and Europe.

On the 13th, the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) announced in its report titled '2021 Overseas Major Automobile Markets and Policy Trends' that the market shares by nationality of automakers increased for Korean and Chinese brands, while European and American brands decreased last year.

The largest increase in market share was in China. China sold 8,164,000 units in 2020 but recorded 10,183,000 units last year, a 24.7% increase compared to the previous year. Its market share also rose from 15.2% to 18.2%. The Chinese brands were influenced by exports of electric vehicles (EVs) utilizing European EV subsidies and expanded exports of low-cost vehicles to Russia, Mexico, and Brazil.

Next, Korea recorded 4,404,000 units, a 10.8% increase compared to 2020, with market share rising from 7.4% to 7.9%, an increase of 0.5%. KAMA explained, "In the United States, it showed the highest growth rate thanks to a relatively good response to semiconductor shortages," and "In Europe, market share slightly increased due to expanded sales of high value-added vehicles such as mid-to-large sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and new electric vehicles." It added, "Sales decreased in China, where there is a strong preference for domestic brands."

Japanese brands maintained their previous year's performance. They increased by 4.0% from 13,744,000 units in 2020 to 14,288,000 units last year. Market share slightly decreased from 25.7% to 25.6%.

American brands recorded 9,489,000 units last year, a 4.6% decrease in sales compared to the previous year. Market share dropped by 1.6 percentage points from 18.6% to 17.0%. During the same period, European brands also decreased by 3.2% to 16,011,000 units, with market share falling from 30.9% to 28.6%.

Last year, the combined size of the world's seven major markets?United States, Europe, China, India, Mexico, Brazil, and Russia?was 55,915,000 units, a 4.4% increase compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, KAMA emphasized the need for close monitoring of the impact on electric vehicle consumers and manufacturers, as countries worldwide are expanding the production share of electric vehicles while simultaneously announcing plans to gradually reduce EV subsidies.

Jung Manki, Chairman of KAMA, stated, "The automobile industry is facing dual challenges: short-term difficulties such as semiconductor supply and rising logistics costs, and the need to prepare for the transition to future vehicles," adding, "The new government should prepare short-term measures such as expanding liquidity support and shift the policy paradigm from past uniform regulations to incentive-based policies related to future vehicles."

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