The Korea Herald reports that the number of imported cars registered with the Korean government has topped the 10,000 mark for the first time, with the import share exceeding 1% in the first nine months of the year.

The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) has announced that new imported vehicles registered with the local authorities, including passenger cars, vans and pickups, numbered 13,482 units in the first nine months, accounting for 1.1% of the nation’s total of 1.24 million units.

The number of newly registered imported passenger cars totalled 11,974 units in the first nine months, accounting for 1.25% of the national total of 956,185 units.

KAMA forecast that the share of imported cars will eventually rise to 1.2% by the end of the year, adding that the share would actually amount to 5% in terms of the vehicle value, as imported vehicles are two to three times more expensive than Korean ones.

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