Hyundai, Kia re-claim top spot in Russia's import car market

SEOUL, Nov. 1 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. and its
affiliate Kia Motors Corp. recaptured the No. 1 position in Russia's imported car
market in the third quarter, an industry think tank said Sunday.
The two automakers sold 32,000 cars during the July-September period in Russia,
grabbing a combined market share of 9.4 percent, according to the Korea
Automotive Research Institute. They beat U.S. carmaker General Motors Corp.,
which sold 24,000 units for a market share of 7.1 percent.
"Sales of compact cars and sport utility vehicles produced by Kia were brisk last
quarter in Russia," a market watcher said.
In the third quarter of 2008, Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors grabbed the top spot
in Russia with a market share of 10.5 percent, but their share fell to 7.7
percent in the fourth quarter, hit by the global economic recession, paving the
way for GM to take the lead until the second quarter of this year.
Meanwhile, the Korean carmakers sold 229,000 units in the United States last
quarter, up 29.2 percent from the previous year and maintaining their No. 5 slot
in sales there.
In China, the automakers' market share stood at 10.1 percent with sales of
221,000 vehicles in the third quarter. The figure marks an increase of 159.8
percent from a year earlier, the institute said.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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