Sales of compact trucks like Hyundai Motor Co.’s Porter and Kia Corp.’s Bongo are on the rise in South Korea, indicating a grim reality that recession drives many small businesses and individuals to delivery gigs for living.

According to Hyundai Motor Group on Friday, the combined sales of Hyundai Porter and Kia Bongo came to 157,237 units last year, up 3.5 percent from the previous year. The figure was the highest increase in the past five years.

The surge in demand for the small commercial trucks is in contrast to how the domestic sales of all cars under the two brands fell 2.5 percent to 1,229,952 units last year from a year ago.

The sales trend signals how more people rely on small cargo trucks as a means of living as recessions cause job losses.

The sales of the two models had plummeted during the financial crisis in 2008 but increased sharply from the following year. Sales also declined in 2020 and 2021 when the pandemic hit the economy but rebounded last year when social distancing measures were lifted.

According to CarIsYou data, 54 percent of individuals who purchased Hyundai Porter or Kia Bongo last year, excluding commercial and government vehicles, were men in their 50s and 60s who are vulnerable to layoffs.

Hyundai Porter was the best-selling car in Korea with 92,411 units last year and 13 out of 100 cars sold by the automaker were Porters.

By Moon Gwang-min and Minu Kim

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]