[이코노믹리뷰=최동훈 기자] Mercedes-Benz (hereinafter referred to as Benz) maintained the No. 1 position in the domestic imported passenger car market in the first quarter, but did not widen the gap with the second-place BMW compared to the previous year.
According to the Korea Imported Vehicles Association (KAIDA) on the 5th, Mercedes-Benz sold 19,222 new cars in Korea from January to March, up 24.8% from the same period last year (15,400).
BMW recorded 17,389 units, an increase of 53.5% from 11,331 units in the same period. Accordingly, the market share by company was calculated as 26.7% for Mercedes and 24.2% for BMW in the first quarter. The market share gap between the two companies was 2.5%, down 4.9%P from the same period last year (7.4%). It is analyzed that since the second half of last year, BMW has actively released new cars by car class, starting with the semi-large sedan 5 series, and improved its membership service, such as launching the customer-only app BMW Vantage. Following the two companies in the first quarter, Audi (7,401 units), Volkswagen (4,647 units), and Volvo (3,651 units) were in order.
The performance trends of two Japanese car makers, including Toyota (including Lexus) and Honda, were mixed. 1,980 units of Lexus, 1,358 units of Toyota, 745 units of Honda, etc. Compared to the same period of the previous year, two brands, including Lexus (41.9%) and Toyota (1.0%), showed an increase in earnings, while Honda fell 19.3%.
Imports sold most in the last quarter were Mercedes’ semi-large sedan E-class (E250, 4,031 units). Mercedes E350 4matics (1,924 units), BMW 520i (1,593 units), Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace (1,553 units) and Audi A6 (1,406 units) were followed. Last month’s best-selling car title was also won by the Mercedes E250 (1,964 units).