Combined quarterly production by the world's ten largest car-manufacturing countries has dropped nearly five percent from a year earlier. 

The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association estimated Tuesday that the number of cars assembled in those countries in the January-March period was around 18-point-five million, down four-point-six percent from the same quarter last year. 

Seven of the countries saw a drop in production with China leading the pack at nine-point-eight percent. South Korea’s production edged down zero-point-six percent to 957-thousand units while the U.S. Germany, India, Brazil and Spain also saw declines. 

Japan bucked the trend along with Mexico and France as strong exports outstripped declines in their domestic sales. 

South Korea remains the seventh largest car producer in the world but the gap with sixth-place Mexico widened from 69-thousand units throughout last year to 72-thousand in the first quarter alone.