Seen here is a used car market in Seoul on Oct. 13, 2020. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, March 7 (Korea Bizwire) — As the shortage of semiconductors for automobiles is delaying shipment of new cars, secondhand markets, particularly for electric vehicles (EVs), are gaining popularity.
EVs are selling immediately after they are put up on the secondhand market. Prices for newer models of EVs on the second-hand market tend to be more or less equivalent to those of new vehicles.
Used car retailer K Car Co. said that it took an average of 9 months and 34 days for a used car to be brought in and sold in the market last year. As of January this year, that has dropped to as low as 15 days.
Sorted by model, the second-hand price for a Tesla Model X SUV in February jumped by 9.55 million won (US$7,780) from December of last year. Hyundai Motor Co.’s IONIQ 5 and the New IONIQ Electric saw their prices jump by 2 million won and 1.83 million won, respectively.
Second-hand prices for commercial EVs like the Hyundai Porter II Electric and Kia Corp.’s New Bongo III Truck EV pickup trucks jumped by 5 million won and 3 million won.
Another used car dealer Encar revealed that second-hand prices for the Tesla Model S (Long Range) and Hyundai’s Kona Electric jumped by 3.64 million won and 1.62 million won, respectively, from the previous year.
“With only a few second-hand EVs put up for sale, the ensuing drought of subsidies for new cars will further increase demand for second-hand EVs,” an industry source said.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
