South Korea report: domestic sales rise 3% in March

GlobalData

Fri, Apr 11, 2025, 9:23 AM 9 min read

Domestic income by South Korea’s 5 main automakers combined roseate by 3% to 123,817 units successful March 2025 from 120,289 units a twelvemonth earlier, according to preliminary wholesale information released individually by the manufacturers. The information bash not see income by South Korea’s low-volume commercialized conveyance manufacturers including Tata-Daewoo and Edison Motors, portion import brands are covered successful a abstracted study aboriginal successful the month.

The home conveyance marketplace past period continued to beryllium driven by the caller roll-out of caller products, peculiarly by the country’s largest automaker Hyundai. Overall request successful the state remains sluggish, however, owed to precocious household indebtedness and anemic sentiment – with consumers spending little connected durable goods. Corporate sentiment has besides taken a deed owed to uncertainty implicit US commercialized policies.

The latest economical information amusement GDP maturation slowed to 1.2% year-on-year successful the 4th fourth of 2024, from 1.5% successful the 3rd 4th and 2.8% successful the archetypal fractional of past year. The cardinal slope continued to chopped its benchmark involvement complaint successful February, to 2.75% from a highest of 3.5% successful 2024, to assistance enactment home consumption.

In the archetypal 4th of the twelvemonth the country’s 5 main home conveyance manufacturers reported a 1.7% summation successful home income to 327,550 units combined, from 322,211 successful the aforesaid play of past year. Hyundai drove the marketplace higher successful this play with income rising by 4% to 166,360 units, portion Kia’s income fell by 2% to 134,412 units. GM Korea reported a 41% plunge to 4,108 units, portion KG Mobility saw its income driblet by 33% to 8,184 units. Renault Korea’s income surged by 150% to 13,598 units from depressed year-earlier levels, pursuing the caller motorboat of the Geely-based Grand Koleos hybrid SUV.

Global income by the country’s “big-five” automakers, including vehicles produced overseas, fell somewhat to 1,928,675 units successful the archetypal 3 months of 2025 from 1,937,639 units a twelvemonth earlier – reflecting somewhat weaker overseas income of 1,601,125 units compared with 1,614,679 previously.

Hyundai Motor’s planetary income fell by 2% to 365,812 units successful March 2025 from 373,290 a twelvemonth earlier, arsenic overseas income continued to weaken portion home income improved slightly. Global income successful the archetypal 4th of the twelvemonth were conscionable somewhat little astatine 999,626 units compared with 1,006,706 previously.

Domestic income roseate by 1% to 63,090 units past period from 62,504 a twelvemonth earlier, with SUVs accounting for 22,433 units portion income by its luxury marque Genesis amounted to 10,592 units. First-quarter income were up by 4% to 166,360 units from 159,967 a twelvemonth earlier.