Seoul, October 20 (QNA) - South Korea's automobile exports rose 16.8% year-on-year in September, supported by robust overseas demand for eco-friendly vehicles in Europe and Asia, data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy showed on Monday, as cited by Yonhap News Agency.
The value of outbound automobile shipments reached $6.41 billion last month -- the highest figure for any September on record. In terms of volume, exports rose 11% from a year earlier to 228,000 units.
Between January and September, South Korea's accumulated auto exports hit an all-time high of $54.1 billion.
By type, exports of eco-friendly cars -- including electric, hybrid, and hydrogen-powered vehicles -- surged 47.5% year-on-year to 90,496 units, marking the first time monthly exports exceeded 90,000 vehicles and accounting for nearly 40% of total car exports.
Among them, hybrid vehicle shipments jumped 55.7% to 57,824 units, while electric vehicle (EV) exports climbed 38.9% to 29,288 units, extending gains for the fourth consecutive month.
On the domestic front, auto sales rose 20.8% year-on-year in September to 158,000 units, the highest level since November 2023. EV sales surged 135% to a record monthly high of 28,760 units.
For the January-September period, domestic EV sales increased 57.5% to 170,000 units, surpassing last year's total of 142,000. The data also showed domestic automobile production climbed 8.9% in September to 334,000 units, aided by a higher number of working days compared with the previous year. (QNA)