'Domestic Demand Slows'... Hyundai Motor February Sales Down 4.1% YoY

Impact of Factory Equipment Construction... Electric Vehicle Subsidy Announcement Also Drives Pent-Up Demand

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Hyundai Motor Company's global sales in February amounted to approximately 310,000 units, showing a slight decrease compared to the same month last year. While overseas sales increased, domestic sales declined. Production of some models was halted due to factory equipment construction, and the waiting demand for electric vehicle subsidies caused the results to be somewhat sluggish.

Hyundai Motor announced on the 4th that it sold a total of 314,909 units last month, a 4.1% decrease compared to the same month last year.

Domestic sales were 47,653 units, down 26.7% from the same month last year. Hyundai explained, "Production of some models such as Grandeur and Avante was suspended due to electric vehicle equipment construction at the Asan plant and line rationalization work at the Ulsan Plant 3," adding, "The reduced number of working days due to the Lunar New Year holidays in February and the later-than-usual announcement of electric vehicle subsidies also affected the fact that electric vehicle sales were virtually nonexistent."

Sales of recreational vehicles (RVs) totaled 18,299 units, down 6.4% year-on-year and 9.7% month-on-month. Sales of the Ioniq 5 notably decreased, dropping 88.3% year-on-year to just 224 units. Santa Fe sales increased by 167% during the same period, reaching 7,413 units. Palisade sales were 2,365 units (-33.2%), Tucson 3,070 units (-13.8%), Kona 1,455 units (-54.9%), all showing double-digit declines.

Sedan sales totaled 7,776 units, down 61.2% year-on-year. The ranking was Grandeur with 3,963 units (-59.6%), Avante with 2,292 units (-63.8%), and Sonata with 1,423 units (-36.5%).

Porter sold 6,355 units and Staria 2,878 units, decreasing by 15.7% and 42.7% respectively compared to the same month last year. Medium and large buses and trucks sold a total of 1,763 units.

Premium brand Genesis sold a total of 10,582 units, an increase of 9.1% year-on-year. GV80 sales alone reached 4,652 units, up 178.1% year-on-year. Sales of G80 at 3,256 units (-24.1%) and GV70 at 1,805 units (-26.9%) declined.

Meanwhile, overseas sales were recorded at 267,256 units, up 1.5% year-on-year.

A Hyundai official stated, "With the completion of electric vehicle equipment construction at the Asan plant and line rationalization at Ulsan Plant 3, vehicle production has normalized, and with the confirmation of electric vehicle subsidies, deferred demand is expected to be resolved in March, leading to increased sales again."

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