Exports Grow for the First Time since COVID-19 Outbreak
Automobile production, domestic sales and exports were all brisk in September.
A report on the domestic automobile industry released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) on Oct. 19 shows that auto production, domestic sales and exports grew 23.2 percent, 22.2 percent and 14.8 percent, respectively, in September compared with a year ago.
The production growth was led by mid- to large-sized sedans and SUVs. Production of large sedans, SUVs and mid-sized sedans climbed by 29,000 units (53.3 percent), 195,000 units (35.5 percent), and 22,000 units (7.3 percent), respectively.
Domestic sales totaled 162,716 units, up 22.2 percent from 2019, with growth attributed to new model launch effects and an increase of three days in business days. Domestically produced cars accounted for 84.7 percent of the total car sales in September, up 1.8 percentage points from 82.9 percent in 2019. Imported car sales fell to 15.3 percent from 17.1 percent in 2019.
Among imported cars, German and Japanese brands saw sales grow 5.6 percent and 32.2 percent, respectively, while other brands from the United Kingdom, Sweden and France suffered sluggish sales.
Exports rose 14.8 percent to 193,081 units thanks to a recovery in the U.S. auto market and brisk sales of SUVs and new models. It was the first monthly growth since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Export revenue amounted to US$3.8 billion, a 23.2 percent increase which was higher than the growth in the number of cars shipped. This was attributed to the increased share of SUVs and electric vehicles, which are more expensive than ordinary cars.
Domestic sales of eco-friendly cars jumped 158.1 percent from the same period of 2019 to 24,375 units, while exports rose 9.1 percent to 26,536 units. The rise in domestic sales was led by electric vehicles (224.2 percent), hybrids (107.4 percent), plug-in hybrids (2,285 percent) and hydrogen cars (1.5 percent).
Exports rose 9.1 percent on year to 26,536 units due to brisk sales of electric vehicles (87.8 percent) and hydrogen cars (9.1 percent). Electric vehicles have emerged as a new export engine since the outbreak of the pandemic with their exports rising for 38 months in a row due to the rapid sales growth of the Kona EV and Niro EV. "Electric cars and hybrids accounted for 94.1 percent of eco-friendly car exports, and the Niro EV and HEV and the Kona EV led EV exports with a 67.1 percent share.
Exports of auto parts rose 9.4 percent from the same period 2019 to US$1.96 billion thanks to a recovery in the North American market and an increase in demand for parts following the normalization of car inventory levels in the European Union.