Kia Achieves 'Record High' Q3 Revenue of 23.1616 Trillion KRW, Up 30.5% YoY (Update)

Operating Profit 768.2 Billion KRW, Down 42.1% YoY
Significant Impact from Engine Quality Costs

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] Kia sold 752,104 units in the third quarter of this year (a 9.9% increase compared to the previous year) (wholesale basis), and its management performance according to IFRS consolidated standards recorded ▲sales of KRW 23.1616 trillion (30.5%↑) ▲operating profit of KRW 768.2 billion (42.1%↓) ▲ordinary profit of KRW 730 billion (54.6%↓) ▲net profit of KRW 458.9 billion (59.6%↓).

Kia held an investor relations (IR) conference call at its headquarters in Yangjae-dong, Seoul on the 25th to announce these management results.

In the third quarter of this year, Kia's global sales were ▲132,768 units in the domestic market, up 6.2% year-on-year ▲619,336 units overseas, up 10.7% year-on-year, totaling 752,104 units globally, up 9.9% year-on-year.

Domestic sales slightly increased year-on-year due to the new car effects of the EV6 and the new Niro, along with improvements in semiconductor and other parts supply, which partially resolved the waiting demand for major SUV models.

Overseas sales increased in most regions despite the full-scale impact of sales suspension in the Russia region, thanks to ▲shifting volume to more profitable regions ▲transition to three shifts at the India plant ▲new car effects of Carens (India) and the new Sportage.

Third-quarter sales revenue increased by 30.5% year-on-year to KRW 23.1616 trillion, driven by ▲improvements in semiconductor and other parts supply ▲full-scale sales of the EV6 and new Sportage ▲price increases due to overall upgrades in the specifications of sold models, along with ▲favorable exchange rate effects.

Despite significant sales growth, third-quarter operating profit decreased by 42.1% year-on-year to KRW 768.2 billion due to increased warranty costs. Accordingly, the operating profit margin fell by 4.2 percentage points to 3.3%.

Meanwhile, Kia's cumulative management performance up to the third quarter this year recorded ▲sales of 2,171,590 units (a 2.0% increase compared to the same period last year) ▲sales revenue of KRW 63.3949 trillion (20.4%↑) ▲operating profit of KRW 4.6088 trillion (18.5%↑) ▲net profit of KRW 3.3724 trillion (4.0%↓).

A Kia official commented on the third-quarter results, stating, “Sales increased due to improvements in parts supply, and the profit structure continued to improve with sales focused on high-profit vehicles based on strong product competitiveness. Favorable exchange rate effects also strongly contributed, but operating profit decline was unavoidable due to significant engine quality costs reflected.”

He added, “However, strong demand across all models and regions continues, so in the fourth quarter, we expect sales recovery and profitability enhancement through supply expansion linked to improvements in semiconductor and other parts supply.”

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