Withdrawal Possibility

 

Regarding ceaseless rumors of GM’s withdrawal of manufacturing presence from South Korea, GM Korea president James Kim said that GM could shut down its facilities in Korea depending on the company’s sales performance in the country.

“Some people say GM Korea will wind up its business but it is not true at all,” he said at the North American International Auto Show that started on January 12, continuing, “They tend to compare the Korean market with the Indian market but the two differ from each other and GM needs both of them.” Still, he added that the continuation of manufacturing in Korea depends on GM Korea’s sales performance.

GM Korea sold a total of 621,872 vehicles last year. The sales volume of the Impala, imported from Detroit, gained much popularity in Korea so the company hit a new high in terms of annual sales volume. The amount in Korea increased 2.6% from a year ago to 158,404.

The president refused to answer to questions as to the recent voluntary retirement while mentioning that nothing has been determined about the production of the Impala in Korea. Earlier, GM Korea said its facilities in Bupyeong, Incheon City will produce the model if its sales volume exceeds 10,000 a year. Last year, the sales volume of the model totaled 6,913 after its local debut in September.

Copyright © BusinessKorea. Prohibited from unauthorized reproduction and redistribution