Cars that are not selling in China are flying off the shelves in South Korea. BYD, facing a domestic slowdown at home, is turning to Korea as a lifeline.
BYD sold 11,675 vehicles in Korea in the first half of this year, ranking fourth among imported brands behind Tesla, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, according to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) on the 21st. That marks a jump of 10 places from 14th a year earlier, when it sold 1,066 units. The Chinese automaker also topped 10,000 in cumulative sales just 11 months after making its first customer deliveries in April last year.
Some models sell better in Korea than on their home turf. BYD's midsize SUV, the Sealion 7, sold just 855 units in mainland China from January through May this year. In Korea, 4,477 units were sold in the first half alone. After the model drew little interest in the Chinese market, BYD shifted it to export-only production.
China's presence in Korea's imported car market is also growing. Newly registered imported vehicles made in China totaled 79,444 units in the first half, overtaking Germany for the first time to become the top country of origin for imported cars. The figure, however, includes vehicles from other brands produced at Chinese plants, such as Tesla.
The trend is also evident in BYD's overall results. Last month, BYD's domestic sales in China fell about 13% from a year earlier, while overseas sales jumped 153.9%. Analysts said markets such as Korea are becoming an outlet for Chinese automakers that have hit a ceiling in competition at home.