Seoul, March 18 : South Korea’s car exports jumped 17.8 per cent from a year earlier last month to reach a record high for any February, driven by solid demand for hybrid cars, data showed on Tuesday.
The combined value of vehicle shipments came to $6.07 billion last month, surpassing the $6 billion mark for the first time in February, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, reports Yonhap news agency.
The volume of exported vehicles increased 17.3 percent on-year to reach 233,000 units, and the number of cars produced also rose 17.1 percent to hit 352,000 units.
The ministry attributed the robust performance to the high demand for hybrid vehicles, as well as strong demand in Asia, the European Union (EU) and the Middle East.
In detail, overseas shipments of hybrid cars soared 61.7 percent on-year to 39,489 units worth $980 million in February.
Shipments of electric vehicles (EVs), however, dipped 2 percent to 23,151 units.
By region, exports to Asian countries jumped 42.3 percent last month from a year earlier to $641 million, and shipments to the Middle East soared 38.2 percent to $480 million.
Outbound shipments to the EU climbed 22.6 percent to $806 million, and exports to the United States went up 14.8 percent to $3.18 billion.
Domestic automobile sales advanced 14.8 percent to 133,000 units in February, as EV sales almost quadrupled from a year ago after the government finalized its plan for EV subsidies for the year.
The ministry said the government will work to maintain the growth momentum, partly by swiftly devising a response strategy to uncertainties in the global trade market sparked by the U.S. administration’s plan to impose auto tariffs. (IANS)