Cadillac reaps record sales in Korea last year

Cadillac of GM Korea said Friday it had marked the largest-ever yearly sales record in Korea, selling 28,000 units, and aimed to focus on quality growth through new releases and reinforced services this year.

“2017 was a special year that can even be described as an inflection point in the history of Cadillac’s entry into South Korea,” Kim Young-sik, president and representative director of Cadillac, said in a press conference in Seoul. Cadillac entered Korea in 1996.

“This year, we will focus on sharing our ‘American luxury’ appeal with more customers here and raising our brand value,” he added.

Last year’s performance marks 83 percent growth from 1,103 units in 2016, a whopping figure compared to the 3.5 percent growth rate of the overall imported car market here.

Its flagship sedan CT6 was its most popular model.

South Korea is now the fifth-largest market for Cadillac which sold combined 356,467 globally, following China, the US, Canada and the Middle East.

Within this month, Cadillac is planning on releasing a 2018 model of Escalade equipped with 10-speed automatic transmission and unveil an elevated version Escalade Platinum in the second half of this year.

It is also considering launching SUV XT4 that will be released in the US and China in Korea as well.

With regard to unrelenting rumors of GM pulling out of Korea, Kim said that it was not a decision that can be made prematurely and that any changes in GM Korea will not affect Cadillac. (khnews@heraldcorp.com)