April 23, 2024

• 

[THE INVESTOR] Samkee Automotive, a local auto parts manufacturer, vowed to reduce its high dependence on Hyundai Motor and lift sales to global clients, including Volkswagen and General Motors.

“We plan to reduce sales to Hyundai Motor Group to below 50 percent of total revenue by 2020,” said Lee Dong-won, vice president of Samkee at the company’s IR event. “By diversifying our clients, we will maximize profit while securing business stability.”

Samkee, which produces automotive die-cast parts, posted 304.5 billion won (US$272.21 million) in revenue last year, up 10.3 percent from the previous year. Hyundai accounted for 76 percent of last year’s sales. 

In the first quarter, sales to Hyundai dropped to 72 percent, while sales to Volkswagen increased to 7 percent from 5 percent in the cited period. It is also targeting to expand sales to US auto giant General Motors, which currently accounts for 3 percent.

This year, the company aims to hike sales to VW and Audi to 34 billion won, or 10 percent of total sales, as its high-dependence on Hyundai is raising investor concerns.

It is also targeting new customers beyond Hyundai and Kia. Samkee recently clinched a 52.3 billion won deal with LG Electronics to supply electric motor housing from 2019 to 2023. The manufacturer is also eying to enter the Chinese EV market, and is in talks with local firms for partnership.

By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)