Eco-friendly vehicles accounted for half of all new car registrations in South Korea during the first half of this year, driven by a sharp surge in electric vehicle sales, according to an automotive market monitor.
This marks the first time that eco-friendly cars have represented more than half of newly registered vehicles during the January–June period, according to the data research centre CarIsYou, which drew on government data.
The data showed that registrations of eco-friendly vehicles — including battery-powered electric cars, petrol-electric hybrids, and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles — reached 429,163 units in the first six months of the year, representing 50.4% of the total 851,833 newly registered vehicles.
The share of eco-friendly vehicles has risen from 9.1% in 2020 to 25.5% in 2023 and 38.5% in 2024, while the share of petrol-powered vehicles fell to 39% in the first half of this year. Electric vehicle registrations surged 112.6% compared with the previous year, reaching 198,969 units in the first half.
An industry official said that an expanded lineup of new models, combined with the early disbursement of government subsidies earmarked for electric vehicles, had helped eco-friendly cars become the dominant segment in the domestic market.