Hyundai Motor chief visits Europe amid sales slump

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Motor Co. Chairman Chung Mong-koo is on a visit to European nations to encourage dealers there to boost sales after a sharp drop in vehicle sales in January, company officials said Tuesday.

Last month, South Korea's top automaker suffered a 27 percent drop in auto sales
as the deepening global downturn hit consumers' big-ticket spending worldwide.
"The visit is aimed at ensuring profits by increasing global sales," said an
official at Hyundai.
Chung began the five-day visit with stops at Hyundai's plants and sales offices
in European countries, including the Czech Republic, Germany and Russia, the
official said, adding that Chung plans to call on dealers there to boost sales.
Hyundai, the world's fifth-largest automaker by sales volume along with its
affiliate Kia Motors Corp., is increasingly worried about a sales collapse in the
United States, the company's largest overseas market.
Hyundai said it slashed output at its domestic plants by 30 percent during the
first-quarter of this year as the global downturn slackened demand for new
vehicles.
In a rare move, Hyundai hasn't set its 2009 sales target, citing a tough market
environment.
Woori Investment & Securities analyst Jeong Yeon-ho said he expects Hyundai's
overseas sales to fall 5.5 percent to 2.63 million units this year.
"Given the steep drop in demand worldwide, Hyundai's sales are likely to decline
further in coming months," the analyst said.