In the domestic market in the first quarter of this year, new-car purchases by people in their 20s rose sharply from the same period last year. Analysts said new-car purchases by people in their 20s, which had been declining every year, are increasing this year due to government subsidies and companies' price cuts.
According to Kaizuyu Data Research Institute on the 12th, the number of new-car registrations by people in their 20s (passenger cars) in the first quarter of this year was 20,356, up 35.7% from 15,006 in the same period a year earlier. It was the highest growth rate among all age groups.
Their share of total registrations was 7.5%. The share of new-car registrations by people in their 20s fell to 5.6% last year, the lowest level in 10 years, and new-car purchases by people in their 20s had been declining every year.
In contrast, the number of new-car registrations by people in their 60s and 70s, which had increased every year, fell to 44,064 and 9,585, down 12.6% and 23.8%, respectively, from the same period a year earlier.
Experts say the increase in new-car registrations by people in their 20s in the first quarter of this year is tied to a surge in electric-vehicle registrations over the same period. People in their 20s, who had shied away from buying cars due to high prices and the spread of car-sharing culture, made large purchases of electric vehicles as subsidies and price cuts lowered the entry barrier, leading to an overall increase in electric-vehicle sales.
The number of electric-vehicle registrations by people in their 20s (passenger cars) in the first quarter of this year was 4,605, a 228.5% surge from 1,402 in the same period a year earlier. The share of electric vehicles in new-car registrations by people in their 20s also reached 22.6%, up 13.3 percentage points from 9.3% in the first quarter of last year. One out of four people in their 20s who bought a new car in the first quarter of this year chose an electric vehicle.
New electric-vehicle registrations (including passenger and commercial) in the first quarter of this year also totaled 83,529, up 149.5% from the same period a year earlier.
The analysis that electric-vehicle price cuts led to car purchases by people in their 20s is also borne out in the sales rankings by model. In the number of new-car registrations by people in their 20s (passenger cars), Tesla Model Y (863 units) and Kia EV3 (751 units) ranked seventh and ninth, respectively, and both vehicles saw price cuts of up to 10 million won starting early this year.