Hyundai Motor's 7-month vehicle sales in China jump 66 pct

SEOUL, Aug. 13 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's leading automaker,
said Thursday that its sales in China soared around 66 percent on-year in the
first seven months of the year mainly due to stimulus measures by the Chinese
government.

The automaker sold a total of 300,816 vehicles in the world's only growing car
market in the January-July period, and the figure is higher than last year's
total of 294,506 units sold, it said.
The automaker benefited from rising sales of small vehicles in China as the
Chinese government cut taxes on cars with an engine size of 1.6 liters or less to
spur demand.
"Hyundai will continue to witness its sales increase steadily down the road,"
said Son Myeong-woo, an analyst at Woori Investment & Securities Co.
Hyundai recently raised its target sales in China for a second time this year on
the back of stimulus measures by the Chinese government to boost demand.
Also, Hyundai Motor plans to start selling revamped Chinese-made Sonata sedans
and i30 compact cars in China this year, which will help further boost sales
there.
Beijing Hyundai, a 50-50 joint venture between Hyundai and Beijing Automotive
Industry Holdings, has two plants in China with a combined capacity of 600,000
units.
Meanwhile, its affiliate Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's No.2 automaker, also saw
its sales in China surge 31 percent on-year to 112,000 vehicles in the first
seven months of the year.
sam@yna.co.kr
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