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South Korea's automobile exports declined in April year on year, largely due to a sharp drop in shipments to the United States following Washington's imposition of steep tariffs on foreign-made cars, reports the Korean Herald, quoting government data.
The value of outbound shipments of automobiles was down 3.8 per cent to USD 6.53 billion in April shows the data of South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Exports to North America declined 17.8 per cent to USD 3.36 billion in April 2025, as compared with April 2024. Shipments to the US also plunged 19.6 per cent to USD 2.89 billion. South Korea's car industry is seeing strong growth, both at home and overseas. Exports to the European Union (EU) jumped by 26.7 per cent in April, reaching USD 953 million, due to strong sales of electric models like Kia's EV3 and Hyundai's Casper Electric, the Korean Herald report added. At home, car sales also rose for the third month in a row, increasing by 6.7 per cent compared to last year. Electric and hybrid cars were especially popular, with EV sales growing by over 50 per cent and hybrid sales by nearly 30 per cent. Together, both the segments made up 46 per cent of all the 151,000 cars sold in South Korea last month, as per the report. However, the industry is keeping a close eye on a new 25 per cent import tax that the US introduced on April 3, a policy that started under former President Donald Trump. The report adds that in order to support the industry, the South Korean government announced plans to inject an additional 2 trillion won (USD 1.43 billion) in liquidity into the industry. It is in addition to the previously pledged 13 trillion won in policy financing. Meanwhile, South Korea and the US will start detailed discussions this week to reach a broader agreement by early July. These talks will focus on the new US tariffs and how the two countries can work together on economic and industrial issues. South Korea has also pledged to work on strengthening the domestic automotive sector. Measures such as subsidies for EV purchases, extended tax incentives for new vehicle buyers and efforts to diversify export markets will be taken. (ANI)
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