Hyundai Motor's sales slump deepens beyond strike fallout
Hyundai Motor headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor
Carmaker faces test of proving resilience with Q4 sales rebound
Hyundai Motor’s push to reverse its sales decline comes under a tougher test in the fourth quarter, as its long-time rivals and emerging players show greater resilience.
The carmaker sold 49,022 vehicles in Korea last month, down 25.7 percent from a year earlier. The company attributed the decline largely to fewer operating days caused by the Chuseok holiday and pent-up demand ahead of its new strategic model launches.
It also pointed to the lingering effects of production disruptions from the 111-day labor dispute that ended in August.
But the scale of Hyundai’s local sales decline stands out, as Kia fared much better with a sales fall of 6.7 percent during the same period.
The contrast is even sharper when looking at overall performance, with Hyundai Motor reporting a sales drop of 16 percent here and abroad. The carmaker also reported an overseas sales fall of 13.9 percent.
Kia’s global sales rose 5.1 percent in September from the previous year, with overseas sales increasing 7.5 percent. The automaker also posted a record third-quarter sales figure of more than 846,000 vehicles.
General Motors Korea’s global sales surged 73.3 percent last month, driven by a 79.5 percent increase in exports of its two strategic models, including the Trax and Trailblazer.
Hyundai Motor's best-selling Tucson SUV / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor
Hyundai is now counting on new models, including its fifth-generation Tucson SUV, to help revive sales in the fourth quarter. The company has also been expanding its hybrid lineup to the best-selling SUV, as part of its key strategy to boost sales in line with growing demand for hybrid cars.
The challenge is whether those measures can generate a meaningful rebound quickly enough. Hyundai’s January-September global sales stood at some 2.9 million units, down 7 percent from a year earlier, while Kia’s rose 4.4 percent during the same period.
"Major competitors are moving to offset domestic sales doldrums by boosting exports and expanding sales abroad," an official from the auto industry said. "Hyundai Motor is tasked with achieving sales rebound in the fourth quarter to clear lingering concerns that the carmaker may end up losing more ground domestically to existing rivals and emerging players, such as Tesla."