Incheon Port, South Korea's largest used car export hub, has broken its all-time high export record in the first quarter of this year.

According to the Incheon Port Authority (IPA) on the 22nd, a total of 166,000 used cars were exported from Incheon Port in the first quarter of this year.

This is a 52% increase compared to the previous record of 109,000 units in the first quarter of last year.

The year-on-year export growth rates by country in the first quarter of this year were: Jordan 274%, Turkey 202%, Kyrgyzstan 101%, United Arab Emirates 77%, and Libya 71%.

The IPA analyzed that the export volume to Turkey, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates, which are import transit points, increased as local demand rose after the end of the civil war in Syria in December last year.

The IPA also explained that the decrease in container shipping rates, from a peak of $6,800 per 20-foot container in 2022 to around $2,100 in April of this year, has increased the demand for used car exports.

The used car export industry has been actively utilizing container ships since the prolonged shortage of car carrier vessels began in 2021, leading to an increase in cargo volume.

In the first quarter of this year, 130,000 used cars were loaded onto container ships at Incheon Port, which is 3.6 times the 36,000 units loaded onto car carrier vessels.

The IPA predicted that the total number of used car exports for this year will be between 600,000 and 650,000 units, exceeding the record high of 500,000 units in 2023.

Incheon Port handles approximately 80% of South Korea's used car export volume, and private used car companies operate export complexes in the vicinity of the former Songdo Amusement Park.

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