South Korea’s auto exports dropped sharply from a year earlier in August as output equally fell, the trade ministry said Thursday.

Outbound shipments of cars fell 18.8 percent on-year to 182,795 units last month, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

“Exports plunged on-year due to a drop in supplies caused by a cut in the number of working days, as well as labor strikes in August,” it said in a press release.

The ministry earlier said that automobile exports, in terms of value, slid 16.9 percent on-year to $2.99 billion in August.

The country’s total vehicle output plunged 20.6 percent on-year to 272,744 units in August with the combined output of the top two local manufacturers, Hyundai Motor, and its affiliate, Kia Motors Corp., shrinking by 24,414 units as their unionized workers staged a series of partial walkouts, it added.

Domestic sales of locally produced cars slipped 4 percent on-year to 106,645 units, while sales of imported vehicles spiked 17.6 percent to 16,442 units, posting a double-digit increase for the 11th consecutive month.

Outbound shipments of auto parts dropped 9.6 percent on-year to $1.92 billion in August, the ministry said. (Yonhap)