Korea’s imported car sales down 19.4% in January

Mercedes-Benz E-Class [Courtesy of Mercedes-Benz Korea]

Sales of imported cars in South Korea fell nearly 20 percent in January from a year ago despite the release of new models such as the country’s first Mercedes-Benz E-Class in eight years.

According to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) on Monday, the number of newly registered imported passenger cars totaled 13,083 units in January, down by 51.9 percent from the previous month and 19.4 percent from a year ago.

By brand, BMW secured the top spot with 4,330 units, followed by Mercedes-Benz with 2,931 units, Lexus with 998 units, and Volvo with 965 units.

The best-selling imported car model was the BMW 520 in January, with a total of 598 units sold. Following closely were the Mercedes-Benz E300 4MATIC (558 units) and Lexus ES300h (556 units).

The imported car market has been on a declining trend since last year.

The total number of newly registered imported passenger cars in 2023 came to 271,034 units, down 4.4 percent compared to the previous year. This signals a reversal in the growth trend observed over the past four years.

The economic doldrums have led to reduced consumer spending, while there are a growing number of consumers that favor domestic brands such as Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. over imported brands.

Last year, Hyundai Motor and Kia aggressively launched new models, leading the market and achieving a competitive market share.

The luxury brand Genesis also played a role in substituting some of the imported car demand domestically.

According to the Korea Automotive Technology Institute (KAMA), Hyundai Motor and Kia jointly held a domestic market share of 75 percent last year.

In response to the downturn, the imported car industry is focusing on expanding market share by introducing new models, particularly popular best-selling cars.

BMW, which reclaimed the top spot in imported car sales last year, introduced the full model change for the 5 Series in October.

Meanwhile, Mercedes-Benz, in its bid to regain market share, launched the new model of the premium sedan E-Class for the first time in eight years. Both automakers are actively pursuing market share expansion through aggressive discount policies.