Hyundai Motor Group became the third largest automaker in the world

Hyundai Motor Group said it ranked third in global vehicle sales in the first half of this year, the first time for the country’s largest automaker.

According to sales data, Hyundai Motor Co., its luxury brand Genesis, and its subsidiary Kia Corp. sold a total of 3.299 million vehicles in global markets between January and June of this year.

The sales figure is third behind Toyota Motor Group’s 5.138 million units and Volkswagen Group’s 4.006 million units.

Hyundai Motor became the fifth largest passenger car manufacturer in the world back in 2010, and since then its development has been more or less synchronized with competitors. Hyundai’s ranking has risen from 5th place year-over-year, surpassing the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance and Stellantis Group, which sold 3.14 million units and 3.019 million units in the first half.

While its global competitors were hit hard by the shortage of chips, Hyundai weathered the crisis as they were able to anticipate a possible shortage of chips in 2021, so they stocked up on them back in 2020, then were able to secure a sufficient supply of chips.

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In addition, strong sales of Genesis vehicles and the launch of new electric vehicles also contributed to overall sales growth. In the US alone, Genesis sold a total of 25 668 units in its first six months, marking the brand’s best sales performance in a critical market.

Hyundai Motor Group predicts that its products will now gradually increase as supplies of semiconductors and other parts improve. The company also plans to increase its presence in the market by launching many new vehicles. Hyundai Motor Co.’s first electric sedan, the IONIQ 6, will go on sale in September. In addition, the Santa Fe Hybrid and the Genesis GV70 electric car will start rolling out of the Alabama plant in the US in October and December, respectively. Hyundai Motor will actively promote the two models in the US market. Kia will also launch a high-performance EV6 GT electric car in the third quarter. The company plans to increase sales of its environmentally friendly vehicles by 30 percent this year.

Despite the strong performance, Hyundai’s first-half sales fell 5.1 percent year-over-year, possibly due to supply chain disruptions and lower consumer demand. However, the drop wasn’t as bad considering that its larger rivals Toyota and Volkswagen saw sales drop by 6 and 14 percent over the same period. The Renault-Nissan Alliance and GM also suffered sales losses of 17.3 percent and 18.6 percent year on year.