The market for imported diesel vehicles in South Korea continues to shrink, with sales this year possibly hitting a record low.

Published: Jun 27, 2025 14:52

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[South Korea's imported diesel car market continues to shrink, with sales this year possibly hitting a record low] According to data released by the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) on June 24, only 349 units of imported diesel passenger cars were sold in the South Korean domestic market in May this year, a sharp decline of 60.2% compared to the same period last year. The cumulative sales from January to May this year reached 1,469 units, a YoY decrease of 50.4%, with a market share of only 1.3%.

As sales have plummeted significantly, the proportion of diesel car models in the overall imported passenger car market has also declined notably. Data shows that diesel car models accounted for only 1.3% of sales among all fuel types in the first five months of this year. Under the influence of the continuous rise in sales of new energy car models, this proportion may fall below 1% within the year. In contrast, the market share of diesel car models last year was 2.9%, the lowest level since 2004.

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