From Detroit Free Press

South Korean auto manufacturing will rise 44 percent to more than 5 million units by 2012, with 2.1 million produced in factories overseas, according to an industry report.

The predicted steady growth would give brands such as Hyundai, Daewoo and Kia a 7.8 percent share of the global market, the Yonhap news agency said, citing research by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade.

South Korean makers made 3.47 million automobiles last year, and the figure will rise to 4 million by 2007, the report said. Output will reach 4.8 million units by 2008, after which production will slow slightly, the report said.

Exports will reach 3.2 million units by 2012, vastly outstripping domestic sales, which are expected to hit 2 million by that year. Foreign sales from Korean plants at home have been growing relatively slowly due to Korean makers' setting up production facilities overseas.

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