UPDATE 1-Mitsubishi Motors says to sell cars in S.Korea

(Recasts with company confirmation)

TOKYO, June 24 (Reuters) - Japan's Mitsubishi Motors Corp (7211.T) said on Tuesday it plans to start selling cars in South Korea from later this year in a bid to capture growing demand for imported vehicles in the country.

The automaker, along with Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp (8058.T) and South Korea's Daewoo Motor Sales Corp (004550.KS), will hold a briefing on its entry in the South Korean market on July 3, a Mitsubishi Motors spokesman said.

The Nikkei business daily reported earlier that Mitsubishi Motors planned to sell five models mainly in Seoul and other major cities through a local dealership set up by Mitsubishi Corp and Daewoo.

The spokesman said the automaker had not decided how many models would be sold in the country.

Mitsubishi Motors would be the fourth Japanese car maker to enter South Korea after Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T), Nissan Motor Co (7201.T), and Honda Motor Co (7267.T). All four are trying to gain a foothold in the country where sales of Japanese vehicles have jumped over 30 percent annually in the past three years, the Nikkei said.

Mitsubishi Motors shares gained 1 percent to 199 yen by the midday break in Tokyo, while the Nikkei average .N225 was almost flat. (Reporting by Sachi Izumi; Editing by Brent Kininmont)