Renault Samsung sales drop 12.7 pct in July

Renault Samsung Motors Co., the South Korean unit of French automaker Renault SA, said Monday that its sales in July fell 12.7 percent from a year earlier due to weak demand at home and abroad. Renault Samsung said it sold 18,507 vehicles last month, compared with 21,194 units sold in the same period last year. Exports dipped 0.8 percent to 8,506 units, with local sales nosediving 20.8 percent from a year earlier to 10,001 units. Overall sales in July also mark a 23.6 percent drop from the previous month's tally of 24,212. For the first seven months of this year, the carmaker said it sold 142,023 vehicles, a decrease of 9.2 percent from a year earlier. Exports surged 35.2 percent to 79,420 units in the January-July period, but this was offset by domestic sales that plunged 36.0 percent to 62,603 units.