[ferro-alloys.com]South Korea exported 550,000 automobiles from July to September, down 13.6% year on year due to weak overseas demand, the Korea Customs Service said Tuesday.

The Q3 fall is the fourth straight quarter that shipments have contracted, it added.

South Korea's leading export destination, the US, posted a 9.9% on the year fall, while Canada saw a 2.5% decline. Over in Europe, exports to Britain fell 22.7% year on year, while Germany was 33.7% lower.

Vice versa, imports of foreign automobiles reached 70,000 vehicles for Q3, a 5.7% increase from the corresponding quarter of 2017, marking a fifth straight quarter of gains.

Amid the weaker exports, the Financial Services Commission on Monday offered Won 1 trillion ($876.2 million ) in credit guarantees, effective November 1, to support small and medium-sized producers of automobile parts.

The commission said makers of automobiles face slowing exports and domestic demand is weakening, thereby affecting auto part makers.

The credit guarantees will allow banks to maker more loans to domestic auto part makers with limited collateral, the state-run commission said.

(G&P Global Platts)

• [Editor:王可]