South Koreans in their 30s made up the biggest customer group for foreign cars here last year, according to industry data on Monday. 

Data from the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association showed that in 2019, a total of 153,677 units of foreign cars were bought by individuals. 

Of the number, 50,645 vehicles, or 33 percent, were purchased by those in their 30s, followed by those in their 40s (31 percent), 50s (19.6 percent), 60s (8 percent), 20s (5.8 percent) and 70s (1.8 percent).

Different age groups had different preferences for foreign cars. BMW was the most popular among customers in their 20s and 30s, while Mercedes-Benz was preferred by those in their 40s to 70s. 

Other brands bought by young customers include Mini, Volvo, Volkswagen, Audi, Honda and Toyota. 

Meanwhile, 1 in 4 people in their 40s bought Mercedes-Benz, followed by BMW, Toyota, Volvo, Honda and Lexus. 

While 8,762 units and 4,248 units of Benz were bought respectively by customers in their 50s and 60s, only 3,697 units and 1,285 units of BMW cars were purchased by the same age groups, respectively. 

Customers in their 70s also preferred Mercedes-Benz, while Lexus was the second-most sold brand among this age group, followed by BMW. 

By Kim Da-sol (ddd@heraldcorp.com)