Car output to reach 4.51 million units in 2015

Vehicle output in South Korea is expected to rise slightly to 4.51 million units in 2015 from this year, thanks to growing demand, a report by a state-run industrial think tank showed Thursday.

According to the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, next year’s numbers represent a 0.5 percent gain from the 4.49 million cars that are expected to be produced in the country this year.

Domestic sales of automobiles should increase 1.7 percent on-year to a little over 1.66 million units next year, while exports, measured in value, can advance 2.8 percent to $77.85 billion, KIET said.

Compared to 2014, the country is expected to pay $14.52 billion to bring in cars from abroad next year. This represents a 7.2 percent jump from numbers expected for this year. (Yonhap)