GM Korea to boost local production of cars to 500,000 on overseas demand

GM Korea, the Korean unit of General Motors, said Tuesday it aims to produce 500,000 vehicles this year to meet growing overseas demand, particularly from the United States. The target represents an 8.5 percent increase from its output of 460,826 units last year amid renewed speculation that the automaker could scale back or exit operations in Korea due to higher U.S. import tariffs. GM Korea's vehicle sales had plunged to 223,623 units in 2021 from 409,830 in 2019, due largely to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales rebounded to 464,648 units in 2023 and 499,000 in 2024. The company said it plans to focus on producing the Chevrolet Trax crossover and the Chevrolet Trailblazer compact sport utility vehicle (SUV) by fully operating its Bupyeong and Changwon plants. "Parent company GM has recently requested GM Korea to operate the two plants at full capacity to produce 500,000 units," a company spokesperson said. GM Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mary Barra earlier said demand for models produced in Korea remained strong and that the vehicles were contributing to the company's profitabWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times