April 25, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Motors posted improved sales results and market share in Europe in the first quarter, according to data by the European carmakers’ association.

In the January-March period, Hyundai Motor sold 141,626 vehicles in Europe, up 7.6 percent from 131,648 units a year earlier, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association  said.

Kia’s sales rose 5.2 percent to 129,310 automobiles in the first quarter from 122,891 units a year ago. Their combined market share in Europe climbed to 6.5 percent from 6.2 percent during the same period the year before, ACEA numbers showed.

Volkswagen Group topped all others with a share of 24 percent, followed by PSA Group with 17 percent, Renault Group with 9.9 percent and Ford Motor with 7 percent, according to the data.

In the first quarter, however, Hyundai and Kia, which together form the world‘s fifth-biggest carmaker by sales, performed poorly in global markets. They sold a combined 750,908 vehicles globally, down 56 percent from 1,712,223 units a year earlier.

By Song Seung-hyun and newswires (ssh@heraldcorp.com)