By Park Si-soo
Volkswagen’s sales in Korea have plunged because of the emissions-cheating scandal that has dealt a devastating blow to confidence in the German carmaker.
Volkswagen sold 947 cars here in October, down 67.4 percent from a month earlier, according to data compiled by the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association, Thursday.
The steep fall brought the combined sales of imported cars in October to their lowest in eight months, according to the association.
It is also the first time in 46 months that Volkswagen has sold fewer than 1,000 cars in the domestic market, it said. October sales were also 46.2 percent lower than those of last year, it said.
No Volkswagen models, including the Tiguan, one of its best-selling models, stayed on the top 10 list in terms of sales.
Sales of Audi, a luxury Volkswagen brand, plummeted 27 percent in October from a month earlier, though they still grew from the year before, the data showed.
Experts and market observers said the setback indicated the scandal had let down domestic customers severely.
They believe the situation will go from bad to worse because of another bombshell the company dropped Wednesday. Volkswagen has admitted 800,000 of its cars have been certified with misleadingly low fuel economy and carbon dioxide emissions ratings.
On the same day, Moody's cut the company’s credit rating by one step to A3, citing expanded allegations on emissions cheating and the company’s admission that it falsified fuel consumption levels on some cars.
Meanwhile, Moody's said Volkswagen had the financial strength to survive what could cost the company many billions of dollars in fines and compensation.