"Overcoming the COVID Wave" Hyundai Kia Motors Sees Two Consecutive Months of Sales Growth in China

April Wholesale Sales: Hyundai Up 16% MoM, Kia Up 69%
Sales Network Fully Normalized in April After COVID Paralysis
China Auto Market Turns to Year-on-Year Growth After 22 Months
Hyundai Kia Strengthens Marketing to Match China Demand Recovery

[Asia Economy Reporter Su-yeon Woo] Hyundai Kia Motors, struggling in major overseas markets such as the United States and Europe due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), is focusing its efforts on the Chinese market. Since March, the Chinese market, where sales have gradually begun to recover, has shown signs of emerging from the COVID-19 shock after April.

According to Hyundai Kia Motors on the 12th, Hyundai Motor's wholesale sales in China in April this year were recorded at 35,000 units, a 16% increase compared to the previous month. During the same period, Kia Motors also sold 20,251 units, a 69% increase from March. However, compared to the same month last year, both Hyundai (-30%) and Kia (-13%) still showed a decline, indicating that it will take time to expand market share in earnest.

In February, when the impact of COVID-19 was at its peak, Hyundai Kia Motors' sales in China fell to about 1,000 units for Hyundai and 200 units for Kia, effectively paralyzing the sales network. Since then, sales have gradually rebounded from March, and in April, they recovered to the level of January this year, before the COVID-19 outbreak.

On the other hand, Hyundai Kia Motors' key overseas markets such as the United States, Europe, and India are still unable to recover from the COVID-19 shock in April. In particular, India, which had driven emerging markets, recorded zero sales in April. This is because lockdown measures were imposed throughout India, causing both dealerships and factories to enter a shutdown (temporary suspension of operations) state.

Accordingly, the focus of Hyundai Kia Motors' overseas sales is expected to shift to the Chinese market, where demand is still alive for the time being. According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), the Chinese automobile market in April was recorded at 2.07 million units, a 4.4% increase compared to the previous year, confirming demand recovery. This is the first time in 22 months since June 2018 that the Chinese automobile market has shown an increase compared to the previous year.

With the end of lockdown measures due to COVID-19, the normalization of operations at Chinese automobile dealerships is also accelerating. The China Automobile Dealers Association announced on the 10th of last month that 99.7% of the 8,857 automobile dealerships nationwide had resumed operations, a clear normalization compared to the 28.3% opening rate on February 10.

In line with the recovery trend in the Chinese market, Hyundai Kia Motors has been implementing a 'Customer Peace of Mind Purchase Support' program since last month, allowing buyers to exchange or return vehicles depending on their situation. Beijing Hyundai introduced a new concept peace-of-mind purchase program called 'Xin An Li De (心安禮得 - Peace of Mind and Various Benefits),' and Dongfeng Yueda Kia launched 'Ai Xin Bu Duan (愛新不斷 - Love Never Ends).'

Beijing Hyundai's Xin An Li De program allows customers to exchange their vehicle for a different model within one month if they change their mind after delivery, and if an accident occurs within one year after delivery, they can replace it with the same new model. Additionally, if the customer is unable to pay installments due to unemployment, the program offers to cover the remaining installments on the vehicle they were driving. Dongfeng Yueda Kia's Ai Xin Bu Dan is the first in the Chinese industry to introduce a peace-of-mind installment program and also offers a new car exchange program. If a customer who purchased a vehicle on installment loses income due to unemployment or illness and has difficulty paying installments, the program covers installments for six months or provides consolation money equivalent to the same amount if the vehicle is returned.

An industry official said, "Hyundai Kia Motors is making a bold move in the Chinese market, which has entered a recovery phase through innovative marketing," adding, "Considering the Chinese government's relaxed eco-friendly vehicle policies after COVID-19, additional measures are expected to be introduced."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.