Kia Motors swings to black in Q1

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SEOUL, April 24 (Yonhap) -- Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-largest
automaker, said Friday it returned to profit in the first quarter on the back of
a weaker won and a rise in new car sales.

Net income came to 97.4 billion won (US$72.6 million) in the three months to
March, a turnaround from a net loss of 24.8 billion won a year ago, Kia Motors
said in a regulatory filing.
Sales, however, fell 5.8 percent on-year to 3.5 trillion won, and operating
profit dropped 13 percent to 88.9 billion won, it said.
Shares of Kia Motors fell 1.4 percent to 10,550 won as of 11:26 a.m. on the Seoul
bourse.
"The won's depreciation and robust new car sales helped Kia Motors turn a profit
in the first quarter, "said Lee Jae-rok, chief financial officer of the company.
The won fell over 30 percent versus the greenback and almost 40 percent against
the yen in the January-March period from the previous year, helping local
carmakers' price competitiveness in the U.S. market.
Kia, affiliated with top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co., increased its U.S. market
share by over 3 percent for the first time, the company said.
Kia sold 219,839 units both at home and abroad in the January-March period, down
12.6 percent from a year ago, as its exports fell 20.6 percent to 141,000 due to
the global economic recession, the company said.
Domestic sales, however, increased 6.4 percent to 79,000 units, helped by a rise
in new car sales, including the small-sized hatchback vehicle "Soul" and small
cars such as "the Morning."
Kia's sales in overall overseas plants fell 31.2 percent to 61,222 units in the
first quarter from a year earlier due to falling demand for vehicles, with its
European plants' sales falling 47 percent to 28,000 units.
Kia said it plans to boost its sales by selling more new cars and cutting costs
in the second quarter and to launch a new sports coupe in June.
ksnam@yna.co.kr
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