Imported car sales continue ascent with BMW at summit

Sales of foreign-made vehicles in Korea jumped 20.6 percent in September on-year to reach a record high, fueled by sales promotions and a steady demand for premium models, a trade association said yesterday.

A total of 12,123 imported vehicles were sold here last month, exceeding the 12,000-level for the first time since foreign cars first made inroads into the market in 1987, according to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (Kaida).

The figure also represents a 14.6 percent rise from the previous month, it added.

For the first nine months of the year, local distributors sold a cumulative 95,706 vehicles, up 20.1 percent from a year earlier, Kaida reported.

“September sales of imported cars gained sharply thanks to releases of new cars, sales promotions and government-led tax cut plans,” the association said in a statement.

BMW topped the list with 2,308 units sold last month. Mercedes-Benz came next with 2,062 cars, followed by Volkswagen with 1,831 and Audi with 1,441.

The Mercedes-Benz E300 was the best-selling model with 593 units sold, while the Toyota Camry came second with 531 units sold and BMW 520d placed third with 515 units. The BMW 320d, the No. 1 seller in August, was relegated to fourth with 459 units.

Meanwhile, domestic sales of five local automakers led by Hyundai Motor slipped 6.65 percent on-year in September to 115,811 units, according to industry data.

Yonhap