A local Hyundai Motor dealer talks with a potential customer at a dealership in Mumbai, India, where the company is enjoying the popularity of its smaller cars, such as the i10. / Korea Times |
Hyundai’s Production in China, India Reaches 1 Mil. Units
By Kim Hyun-cheol
Staff Reporter
Production at Hyundai Motor's China and India plants has surpassed 1 million vehicles in, the world's two fastest-growing auto markets, according to the latest data.
By November, the maker produced 510,357 vehicles in its Chinese plants and 501,912 vehicles in India, the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association said Sunday.
Its Chinese production, in a compelling 90.9-percent growth on year, reached the 500,000-mark for the first time since its first unit Beijing Hyundai was launched in 2002. Hyundai's Indian plant in Chennai also celebrated the same achievement 11 years after its construction by rising 9 percent.
In the 11-month period, Hyundai manufactured 338,707 vehicles in facilities in the United States, Turkey and the Czech Republic to take its overall overseas production to 1.36 million vehicles, up 20.9 percent from a year earlier.
The maker expects the figure to reach a record 1.5 million by the end of 2009, with China and India taking up three quarters of the volume.
On the back of ever-growing demand, Hyundai is reportedly mulling over raising its share in the two markets. In the first half of next year, the company plans to begin construction of a third Chinese plant, which will be completed in 2012 with an annual capacity of 300,000 cars.
Overseas production is likely to outnumber domestic manufacturing for the first time next year. Under its 2010 plan unveiled earlier this month, Hyundai will produce 1.7 million cars at home and 1.72 million in overseas plants.
Combined with its biggest affiliate Kia, Hyundai aims to sell 5.4 million cars abroad next year, up 750,000, or 16 percent, from its initial projection. Its target growth is around 2.7 times higher than the overall global forecast of 6 percent.
Currently, Hyundai-Kia is estimated to produce 5.5 to 5.8 million vehicles, which means the local auto giant aims to be near its maximum capacity in 2010.
Its production is expected to expand to 3.3 million abroad by 2012 with the completion of several new plants. Following commencement of operations at Kia's U.S. plant in Georgia next year, a new Hyundai facility in Russia will be launched in 2011 before the scheduled construction of Hyundai plants in Brazil and China the following year.
hckim@koreatimes.co.kr
|
무디스, 스페인·伊·포르투갈 신용등급 강등
