S. Korea's auto exports set June high despite U.S. shipments decline, tariffs

Last month, South Korea's automobile exports marked a record high for any June, buoyed by regional gains and an EV rebound amid U.S. tariffs.

Our Moon Ji-young has more.

South Korea's auto exports rose from a year earlier in June as a surge in shipments to Europe and Asia more than offset a decline in shipments to the U.S. caused by U.S. tariffs.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Thursday, the country's auto exports came to 6-point-34 billion U.S. dollars in June, up more than 2 percent year-on-year. This performance marks a record high for any June.

By region, exports to the U.S. dropped for the fourth consecutive month, falling 16 percent.

Conversely, European Union shipments surged more than 32 percent, and Asia also saw growth of more than 35 percent.

These strong gains partly offset the decline in exports to the U.S.

Notable growth was seen particularly in Germany and the Netherlands, where exports nearly doubled.

The Ministry attributed the growth to a base effect from sluggish exports in the same month last year, along with strong electric vehicle exports, among other factors.

Outbound shipments of EVs saw their first growth in 16 months, rising more than 11 percent year-on-year.

Exports of eco-friendly cars amounted to 2-point-2 billion dollars, up over 18 percent from a year earlier.

Regarding the outlook for the auto industry in the second half of this year, a ministry official said.

"Measuring the outlook for the second half presents numerous uncertainties. Among potential downsides, should phenomena like a demand pull-forward effect in the US occur, the latter half of the year could face a slight downturn. Conversely, factors that could lead to an improvement include the resolution of global uncertainties stemming from tariff negotiations, or a further expansion of electric vehicle exports to Europe. These could, in fact, serve as positive influences."

Meanwhile, domestic production remained flat at over 353-thousand vehicles.

More than 72-thousand eco-friendly cars were sold in South Korea in June, up 36 percent from a year earlier.

Moon Ji-young, Arirang News.