Domestic electric vehicles have never seen their share of the Korean market fall below half. They accounted for 64.0% in 2024 and 57.2% in 2025. This year, however, a crisis is emerging as Tesla accelerates in earnest. With Chinese brands BYD and Zeekr also joining in, the market has descended into a fierce contest.
According to industry sources Tuesday, Tesla sold 56,139 units from January to June, outpacing Hyundai Motor (005380.KS) in EV sales by 1.4 times, as Hyundai sold 39,575 units. Last year, Tesla narrowly edged out Hyundai's EV sales of 55,461 units with 59,893 units, but this year the gap widened sharply to more than 16,500 units in the first half alone.
If Tesla maintains its current pace, it is expected to far exceed 100,000 units this year, doubling last year's total. Through the first half, Tesla's market share stood at 28.2%, on the verge of breaking 30%. "Tesla abruptly raised prices right after it was confirmed as eligible for the government's EV subsidies," an industry official said. "Its elastic pricing policy could serve as a variable in sales trends."
Hyundai Motor led the domestic EV market in 2024, accounting for 44,986 units (30.7%) of the 146,734 EVs sold. The Ioniq 5 (14,009 units) and Casper Electric (7,526 units) were its mainstays. But it subsequently failed to introduce a clear EV lineup apart from the Ioniq 9, plunging to third place. It aims for a turnaround in the second half with the launch of Genesis' large sport utility vehicle (SUV) GV90, but the obstacle is that it is not a volume model that can significantly boost sales.
What is holding back Tesla's rapid domestic expansion, for now, is Kia (000270.KS). Kia is waging a volume battle, expanding its EV lineup from compact SUVs to purpose-built vehicles. In the first half, the EV3 (18,431 units), EV5 (15,965 units) and PV5 (15,000 units) drove its performance. Total EV sales reached 72,078 units, accounting for 36.2% of the total (198,969 units). Even amid Tesla's surge, it raised its market share by 8.7 percentage points from 27.5% last year. Kia plans to expand its EV models from 11 this year to 14 by 2030. While it may trail Tesla's Model Y as a single model, its strategy is to compete with a dense product lineup tailored to customer demand.
The problem is that not only Tesla, but also Chinese EV brands such as BYD and Zeekr are gradually eating into the share of domestic EVs. BYD, which started with 1,037 units sold in 2024, reached 11,675 units in the first half of this year alone. Its market share also expanded from 0.7% to 5.9%. BYD ranks fourth in sales among 26 imported car brands, after Tesla, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
Although BYD was excluded from government subsidies starting this month, it immediately launched a customer benefit program in July that provides an amount equivalent to the previous subsidies for one month. This signals a willingness to engage in bruising competition. BYD Korea is investing aggressively in the Korean market, aiming to build 35 showrooms and 26 service centers nationwide this year.
Zeekr announced Tuesday that its "7X," a mid-size electric vehicle marking its first launch in Korea, surpassed 1,000 units in pre-orders within a month. Zeekr also does not receive government EV subsidies, but it is strengthening its offensive by independently providing free options and discounts of up to 1 million won to customers. Zeekr, which brands itself as a premium EV maker, poses another burden for domestic EVs, as its core market does not overlap with BYD's. Including the Tesla Model Y, the proportion of Chinese-made EVs rose from 24.0% in 2024 to 33.9% last year.
