THE KOREA HERALD – The average unit price of South Korean car exports is expected to hit an all-time high in 2023 thanks to stellar overseas demand for sport utility vehicles and electric vehicles (EVs), industry data showed on Monday.
In the first 11 months of this year, South Korea exported a total of 2.52 million units of automobiles, worth KRW64.5 trillion (USD49.5 billion), with the average unit price reaching KRW25.6 million,
according to the data from the Korea Automobile and Mobility Association (KAMA).
It is the first time that the unit price, or the price of a single product, has exceeded KRW25 million, KAMA said.
The figure has been on a steady growth over the past few years, rising from KRW16.7 million in 2018 and KRW17.9 million in 2019.
With the increase in the unit price, KAMA predicted that the total value of the country’s car exports will likely top KRW70 trillion for the first time.
Cumulative exports through November this year amounted to KRW64.5 trillion, already surpassing last year’s annual export value of KRW54 trillion.
KAMA attributed the rise in the unit price of car exports to rising popularity of higher value-added cars, like sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and EVs, in international markets.
During the 11-month period, 18.3 million units of Korean SUVs were shipped overseas, accounting for 72.8 per cent of the total passenger car exports.
Overseas sales of EVs soared 65.7 per cent on-year to 316,000 units over the cited period, while exports of hybrid cars reached 283,000 units.