Korea’s mid-sized automakers suffer from sluggish sales

The 2025 Chevrolet ‘Trax Crossover’.

South Korea’s mid-sized automakers are facing challenges with sluggish domestic sales.

According to respective sales figures released by the country’s top five automakers on Monday, the three mid-sized companies GM Korea Co., Renault Korea Inc., and KG Mobility Corp. saw sales drop by about 50 percent in August from a year ago.

On the other hand, Hyundai Motor Co. saw its sales go up by 4.6 percent in August from a year ago.

GM Korea was among the hardest hit, with total sales of 15,634 units in August, down 50.7 percent from a year ago.

Domestic sales were particularly weak, with only 1,614 units sold, down 51 percent from a year earlier.

GM Korea said that its domestic sales in the first 8 months of this year also fell by 34.6 percent on year.

GM Korea’s sluggish sales comes amid a partial strike following the rejection of the provisional agreement at the end of July. This has led to production disruptions.

Renault Korea, which adopted a new emblem, sold 1,350 units in August, down 10.1 percent from the previous year.

KG Mobility saw a slight increase in August sales compared to last year. Its sales in the January-August period, however, declined by 31.5 percent from a year ago.

Sales of flagship models such as Tivoli and Torres were down as much as 40 percent in August from the same period a year ago.