South Korea's automobile exports fell for the seventh straight month in May due to faltering demand from emerging markets, the government said Thursday.

Outbound shipments of vehicles came to 218,655 units last month, down 11.6 percent from 247,343 units tallied a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.


The May figure narrowed from a 19.7-percent on-year drop in April, the largest decline since September 2009 when it plunged 22 percent in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.

From a month earlier, it fell 3.5 percent from April's 226,535 units.

The total value of overseas shipments slid 7.2 percent on-year to US$3.45 billion, with a 1.1-percent on-month drop.

For the first five months of the year, car exports fell 13 percent on-year to 1.1 million units.

"As countries in the Middle East and Latin America are suffering a deep economic slump, demand for South Korean cars continues to wane to a large extent," the trade ministry said in a release.

Meanwhile, total output by five local carmakers led by industry leader Hyundai Motor Co. edged down 1.1 percent on-year in May to 361,492 units from 365,643, as sluggish exports offset brisk domestic demand.

Domestic sales jumped 18.3 percent on-year to 166,271 units last month, marking the biggest on-year gain in seven months on the back of the resumption of an excise tax cut program.

Earlier the government announced a plan to extend tax benefits on passenger cars to revive faltering domestic consumption through June. (Yonhap)