Imported vehicle sales jump 29.3% in Oct. on strong EV demand

Sales of imported vehicles in Korea rose a sharp 29.3 percent in October from a year earlier, driven by robust demand for electric vehicles (EVs), industry data showed Wednesday.

New registrations increased to 31,117 units last month from 24,064 a year earlier, according to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA).

The three top-selling imported cars were the Tesla Model Y Premium, Mercedes-Benz E200 and Tesla Model 3. The two Tesla models are manufactured in China for the Korean market, allowing the company to offer them at competitive prices.

Tesla’s sales more than doubled to 9,165 units last month from 4,350 a year earlier. However, its sales fell 25.9 percent from the previous month due to supply shortages, KAIDA said.

The U.S. EV maker remained the best-selling imported passenger car brand in Korea for the ninth consecutive month, extending its run since February.

Sales by BYD Korea, the local unit of China’s BYD, surged 93.4 percent to 1,594 units from 824 a year earlier. The company began local operations in January last year, with sales first reported in March.

By powertrain, fully electric vehicles accounted for 46.4 percent of total registrations, or 14,424 units, followed by hybrid vehicles at 45.9 percent, gasoline-powered vehicles at 6.8 percent and diesel vehicles at 0.9 percent.

Three German automakers — Volkswagen Group Korea, BMW Group Korea and Mercedes-Benz Korea — sold a combined 14,556 vehicles in October, up a respectable 8.3 percent from 13,441 a year earlier.

German brands accounted for about 47 percent of imported vehicle sales in Korea last month.