Last month, automobile exports to the United States decreased by 20% due to the tariff policy of the Donald Trump administration.
According to the 'April automotive industry trends' released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 20th, the export amount of automobiles to the United States last month was $6.53 billion, a decrease of 19.6% compared to the same month last year ($3.596 billion). The cumulative export amount of automobiles to the United States from January to April this year was $10.661 billion, a decrease of 13.6% compared to the same period last year.
A Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy official noted, "The tariff has started to be imposed in earnest, and with the new factory in Georgia beginning operations, exports to the United States have decreased."
However, exports to other regions excluding the United States showed a favorable trend. The Kia EV3 and Hyundai Casper EV are gaining popularity in Europe, resulting in EU exports recording $953 million, an increase of 26.7% compared to the same month last year.
Exports to the Asian region also grew to $681 million, a 53.9% increase compared to the same month last year. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy explained that with the establishment of official diplomatic relations with Syria last month, a 'Syria special' seems to have emerged.
The total export amount of automobiles in April was $6.527 billion, a decrease of 3.8% compared to the same month last year.
The domestic automobile production in April was 386,000 units, a decrease of 2.2% from the same month last year. Despite increased uncertainty in trade, driven by rising domestic sales and strong exports outside of North America, production did not significantly drop, said a Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy official.
Domestic sales volume was recorded at 151,000 units, showing a trend of production increase for three consecutive months compared to the previous month. This represents a 6.7% increase compared to the same month last year. In particular, the increase in domestic sales of electric vehicles (+50.3%) and hybrid vehicles (+29.9%) was notably evident.