AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)05/03 Report--

According to Yonhap news agency, according to the results released by five South Korean vehicle manufacturers, global sales of Korean cars in April were 684000, up 8.6 per cent from a year earlier.

By brand, Hyundai's global sales totaled 336000 vehicles in April, up 8.5 per cent from a year earlier, of which 67000 were sold locally, up 12.2 per cent year-on-year, and 270000 overseas, up 7.6 per cent. Kia sold 260000 vehicles globally, up 8.3 per cent from a year earlier, with domestic sales falling 1.6 per cent to 49000 and overseas sales up 11.0 per cent to 210000.

Looking at the global market, modern Kia is living a good life. In 2022, Hyundai Kia Group's total global sales of 6.8482 million vehicles, second only to Toyota, Volkswagen, ranking third in the world. Of these, Hyundai sold 3.9446 million vehicles, up 1.4% from the same period last year, while Kia sold 2.9036 million vehicles, up 4.6% from the same period last year.

In terms of market segments, the United States and India are Hyundai Kia's main markets. Hyundai Kia sold 1.474 million new cars in the United States and 807000 in India in 2022. However, as the world's largest automobile market and the largest new energy vehicle market, the sense of existence of Hyundai Kia is declining. According to a report released by the Korea Automobile Industry Association (KAMA), the market share of Korean cars in China has fallen to 1.6% in 2022, well below its global average market share of 7.3%.

Retail data show that Hyundai sold 60100 vehicles in Beijing and 18752 in Yueda Kia in the first quarter of 2023. It seems that both Hyundai and Kia are facing a huge crisis in the Chinese market. To put it another way, even though Hyundai Kia's share of the Chinese market continues to decline, its global market performance has improved by leaps and bounds. Perhaps, whether there is a Chinese market or not does not seem to be so important to Hyundai Kia.

Of course, Hyundai Kia is also well aware that the future automobile development center must be in China. If we want to ensure our position in the global market, we must continue to deepen China's layout and seek further development.

The new Elantra N was unveiled at the 2023 Shanghai Auto Show and is expected to be launched in the fourth quarter. The powertrain consists of a 2.0T turbocharged engine and an 8-speed wet double clutch transmission with a maximum power of 280hp, a peak torque of 392N ·m and a 0-100km/h acceleration time of 5.3s. Earlier, Kia China officially announced that it would accelerate its transition to motorization and unveiled three new electric models, the EV5 concept car, the EV9 concept car and the EV6GT, of which the EV5 will be launched in November, which will be Kia's first global model produced in China and debuted.

It is not difficult to see that Korean brands still do not want to give up the Chinese market, nor will they give up the Chinese market lightly, but they may not have decided how to survive in the Chinese market. Take Kia EV5 as an example, although the current price is unknown, as a joint venture pure electric SUV, its price is not expected to be very low, while the current sales of pure electric vehicles launched by brands such as Toyota, Honda and Nissan in China are very mediocre. On the one hand, Korean brands need to compete with German and Japanese brands, while facing the suppression of independent brands, the pressure is not generally small.

In fact, the problems and challenges encountered by Korean cars in the Chinese market are "not built in a day". These problems are not simple products, technology, pricing, etc., and do not want to make progress in all aspects of decision-making. Of course, this may not all be the reason for Korean brands, because life for German and Japanese brands in the Chinese market is becoming more and more difficult, especially for Japanese brands, which all declined in the first quarter of 2023, such as Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mazda.

Perhaps, Korean brands can not figure it out, leading the world, why can't they sell well in China? In fact, whether it is Hyundai and Kia, the car-building style still stays in the traditional way, which is very similar to Japanese manufacturers such as Toyota and Honda. Traditional cars are four wheels plus one engine, but the current market update is fast. Especially under the new energy track, they may not know what Chinese consumers need.

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