India replaced South Korea as the world’s fifth-largest producer of automobiles in the first seven months of this year, industry data showed on Sept. 25.South Korea fell one rank to No. 6 in the cited period, the first time in 12 years that the country lost the No. 5 spot.According to data from Korea Automobile Manufacturer’s Association Korea, the country’s accumulated auto production stood at 2.55 million units from January to July, fewer than 2.57 million by India.

Last year, South Korea’s annual production posted 4.55 million units, compared with 4.12 million units by India.Industry officials are concerned the country would be in danger of losing the No. 5 spot on an annual basis this year, as the local auto industry is faced with slump in export and dwindling domestic car sales due to ongoing labor strikes and the termination of the tax cut on new car purchases.In the first seven months of this year, China produced 12.79 million units, followed by the US with 7.08 million, Japan with 5.40 million and Germany 3.62 million.