South Korean car makers have reported a combined 46% jump in September sales, with Hyundai posting a monthly record, but the outlook for the upcoming quarters remains unclear, according to a media report.
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The auto makers showed signs of recovery amid softer oil prices, and as interest rates were not expected to rise further at home or abroad, but analysts told Reuters it was premature to turn optimistic on the sector yet.
“Conditions for the global auto market are not that good, with oil prices and interest rates still high,” Woori Investment and Securities auto analyst Stephen Ahn told the news agency, adding: “Asia’s third-largest economy has not been strong enough to lift its local car demand.”
Local sales increased in September ahead of the traditional, three-day Chusok holiday, when many South Koreans visit their home towns, and as unionised workers at auto makers made up for output lost during strikes, Reuters said.
Some reportedly expect South Korean auto makers to see a fall in local sales in the fourth quarter after enjoying higher sales a year earlier, when customers rushed to buy new cars before the end of a tax benefit.
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By GlobalData“Last year, local car makers were able to boost sales in November and December, just before the government lifted a temporary tax benefit on cars,” Dongbu Securities analyst Cho Soo-hong told the news agency. “By contrast, there doesn’t seem to be much momentum to lift local demand now,” he added.
The outlook for car exports is also unclear amid intensifying competition in emerging markets such as China, the report said.
Combined September vehicle sales at South Korea’s five auto makers rose to 547,371 vehicles from 375,132 a year earlier. Exports rose 47.8% to 432,892 vehicles, with domestic sales up 39.1% to 114,479.
Brisk auto sales abroad led a 22.1% rise in the country’s overall exports for September over a year earlier, soundly beating market expectations and marking the fastest annual pace since November 2004, government data showed, according to Reuters.
