Sales of imported light passenger vehicles in South Korea continued to rebound strongly in November 2022, by 50% to 28,222 units from weak year earlier sales of 18,810 units, according to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA).
Supplies of semiconductors have improved significantly in the last few months, allowing global vehicle manufacturers to fulfill back orders and claw back losses made earlier in the year.
Deliveries in the first 11 months of the year were slightly higher at 253,795 units from 252,242 units a year earlier, not including some brands such as Tesla, while total sales by domestic manufacturers were down 3% at 1,260,653 units in the same period.
German owned brands accounted for 77% of imported light vehicle sales year to date, or 194,664 units, led by BMW which reported a 17% rise to 71,713 units. Its sales this year have been lifted by the launch of the iX1 and iX3 battery-powered SUVs at the end of 2021, the i4 and the new 8-Series in the first half of 2022 and the X7 and new 7-Series models in the fourth quarter. Mini YTD sales fell 1.5% to 10,253 units.
Mercedes-Benz slipped into second place with sales rising just 3% to 71,525 units, despite the launch of the new C-class early in the year followed by the EBQ and EQE battery powered sedans.
Volkswagen sales were down 2.5% at 13,113 units YTD while Audi volume dropped 12% to 18,761 units and Porsche deliveries fell 2% to 7,978 units, reflecting the global semiconductor shortage and weak EV model lines.
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By GlobalDataVolkswagen Group Korea said earlier this year it planned to launch 22 new and upgraded models in 2022 to help reverse its decline, including several from Bentley and Lamborghini. The distributor began deliveries of the Audi Q4 e-tron and VW ID.4 BEVs in September.
Volvo YTD sales fell 7.5% to 12,618 units, despite launching the C40 Recharge EV earlier in the year, the first of seven battery powered models it plans to launch by 2030.
Toyota sales were down 2% at 5,819 units YTD while Lexus division reported a 37% plunge to 6,534 units, with deliveries significantly disrupted by supply chain shortages. The upmarket brand introduced the UX300e and NX450h hybrid SUVs in July and said it planned to launch the RZ 450e BEV large SUV next year as part of its plans to go all electric by 2035.
