 Hyundai-Kia Chairman |
Staff Reporter
Hyundai Motor, South Korea's largest carmaker, aims to sell 3.5 million automobiles in global markets this year, up 11 percent from 2009, in order to nudge past its rivals in the international competition.
In an annual report to its shareholders, the Seoul-based company announced the goal of racking up double-digit growth in sales. To achieve this task, Hyundai is set to focus on making better cars.
``In the aftermath of the global financial crisis, I expect turmoil throughout this year. In this climate, we will put the top priority on increasing the competitiveness in quality control,'' Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo said.
``Plus, we will try our best to offer high value to end customers. We will achieve our sales target by beefing up our focus on clients,'' the 71-year-old chief executive officer said.
Regarding its recent success in the world's largest automobile market, China, and the runner-up, the United States, Chung said that the firm's attempts of seeking local relevance have worked.
``Based on the product competitiveness, we rolled out new cars customized to the tastes of end users overseas. Advances into fresh markets and our differentiated marketing strategies also helped,'' Chung said.
Market observers pointed out that Hyundai would be able to achieve its sales goal in 2010.
``Hyundai Motor jacked up its sales over the past two years when the international market shrank due to the economic distress,'' said Suh Sung-moon, a senior analyst at Korea Investment & Securities.
``This year, the market is generally expected to expand. Then, the consensus is that Hyundai will be able to chalk up a double-digit growth by outperforming the market as it did for the past few years.''
Suh noted that the massive recalls of Toyota Motor, the world's No. 1 player, will also help Hyundai cruise for the time being. Furthermore, of note is the advent of the cooperative trade union last year.
``Another bright side is that the trade union is relatively friendly to the management. Contrary to the previous unionists notorious for their militant stance, the current one would not cause any disruption to production,'' Suh said.
Lee Sok-je, an economist at Mirae Asset Securities, concurs on the optimistic views.
``Obviously, it is a tall task to sell 3.5 million cars this year. It depends largely on how fast the world economy will fully recover from the downturn, which, of late, has hit consumer sentiment hard,'' Lee said.
``Yet, Hyundai already clocked substantial growths over the first two months of this year. Hence, I think it is reasonable for the company to attain the annual target, too. Many people think that the goal is not that aggressive.''
Together with its sister firm, Kia Motors, Hyundai is the world's sixth-largest carmaker and hopes to climb up the ladder of the global ranks further this year in order to become one of the top five players.
voc200@koreatimes.co.kr
