"US Cars Rank 2nd in South Korea's Imported Car Market... Trade Expansion Over 10 Years of Korea-US FTA"

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Over the 10 years since the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed, American brands have continued to grow their sales in the Korean imported car market, rising to the second place in sales last year.

The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) announced on the 27th that, marking the 10th anniversary of the Korea-US FTA, an analysis of automobile export-import trends between the two countries shows that Korea's market openness to American cars is increasing and trade in automobiles with the US is expanding.

Sales of American brands have increased for four consecutive years due to improved price competitiveness influenced by the elimination of tariffs on passenger cars under the Korea-US FTA. Last year, American car brands sold 46,000 units (15.2%) in the Korean imported car market, surpassing Japanese brands which sold 21,000 units (7%), ranking second behind German brands (61.9%).

Of the total 2,367,000 vehicles exported by the US last year, 67,000 units (2.8%) were exported to Korea, making Korea the 9th largest export market for American automobiles.

KAMA analyzed that Hyundai Motor, Kia, and GM have contributed to expanding trade and economic development and cooperation between the two countries through increased investment in research and development (R&D) and production facilities in both Korea and the US.

Hyundai Motor and Kia's sales share in the US market last year was 8.5%, close to the record 8.9% set in 2011. From January to May this year, they recorded a strong performance with 9.4%.

Additionally, Korea GM's exports to the US expanded from 18,000 units in 2011 to 233,000 units last year, showing a high average annual growth rate of 32.9%.

In particular, of GM's 227,000 small sport utility vehicles (SUVs) sold in the US market last year, 80.4% (182,000 units) were produced by Korea GM. Korea GM and US GM have structured their R&D and production models complementarily, competing with Japanese brands.

Chairman Jeong Manki pointed out, "In the past, the US perceived the Korean automobile market as closed, similar to the Japanese market, but recently, the US Trade Representative (USTR) has given a positive evaluation of the increase in American car sales in Korea through its country-specific trade barrier report, significantly improving perceptions."

He added, "Building on this improved perception, the two countries need to further strengthen cooperation by expanding research and development and cross-investment not only in automobiles but also in various future car-related fields such as semiconductors, batteries, and artificial intelligence (AI)."