Sales of imported vehicles in South Korea jumped by over 29% to 25,923 units in April from 20,051 units a year earlier, according to data released by the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA).
Demand for German cars continued to rebound, accounting for six of 10 imported vehicles sold in South Korea last month. Both Volkswagen and Audi had returned to the market in the last six months after more than a year of exclusion due to the emissions cover-up scandal which came to light in 2016.
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The association revealed the three best-selling imported models last month were the Audi A6 35 TDI, the BMW 520d and the Mercedes-Benz E200.
In the first four months of the year, imported vehicle sales increased by over 24% to 93,328 units compared with 75,017 units a year earlier. The import share of the local passenger car market has increased to 18.5% from 15.3% a year ago.
Earlier this year KAIDA said it expected import sales to rise by 9% to 256,000 units this year, compared with 233,088 units last year, but this now seemed a conservative estimate.
