Hyundai chief rings in fourth year at helm as brand value, sales climb

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Hyundai chief rings in fourth year at helm as brand value, sales climb

Published: 13 Oct. 2024, 18:21

LEE JAE-LIM
lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung speaks at the automaker's new year's event, emphasizing "constant change" to his employees, in January 2024. [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

Hyundai Motor Group is strengthening its EV brand portfolio globally despite a temporary ongoing EV chasm, having accumulated an array of recognition from the U.S. and European mobility industries under the leadership of Executive Chair Euisun Chung.

Chung celebrates the four-year anniversary of his tenure on Monday, with the automaker’s global status rising rapidly with him at the helm. The company ranked third in global sales in 2022, and the following year achieved top ratings from three global credit rating agencies — S&P, Moody’s and Fitch — for the first time since its establishment.

The only other automakers to achieve this are Germany’s Mercedes-Benz and Japan’s Toyota and Honda.

Hyundai Motor has also achieved robust sales, profitability and enhanced brand competitiveness under Chung’s tenure.

In the highly competitive U.S. market, the group entered the top four automakers in terms of sales last year, and maintained its position in the first half of this year with sales of 810,000 units, including 160,000 eco-friendly vehicles.

In the first quarter of 2024, Hyundai and Kia’s combined operating profit of 6.98 trillion won ($5.17 billion) surpassed that of Volkswagen, which posted 4.59 billion euros ($5.02 billion).

The success is noteworthy for the record results despite a slight dip in sales in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period the year before, attributed to its strategic focus on high-profit vehicles like its recreational vehicles and Genesis models, which constituted 60 percent of Hyundai's sales in the first half of 2024, while 78 percent of Kia’s U.S. sales during the same period were from RVs.

Hyundai and Kia’s combined brand value reached $31.1 billion in 2024 according to Interbrand’s brand value evaluation, a surge of more than 54 percent from 2020’s $20.1 billion.

Despite the EV chasm, Hyundai and Kia are also solidifying their leadership in the global eco-friendly vehicle market. The two companies sold a total of 61,883 EVs in the U.S. in the first half of 2024, a 60.9 percent increase from 38,457 units in the same period last year. Their market share in the U.S. EV market surged to the double digits, ranking second only to Tesla.

Hyundai Motor credits its EV-dedicated platform, E-GMP, as a key component of Chung’s strategy for the company to become a first mover in the industry. The platform made this year’s edition of the Wards Auto 10 Best Engines and Propulsion Systems list for the third consecutive time.

To strengthen EV brand competitiveness, the automaker plans to maximize efficiency and price competitiveness while focusing on developing battery safety technologies. Hyundai plans to establish a full lineup of 21 EV models by 2030, while Kia aims for 15 models by 2027.

The group will continue to pursue mid- to long-term road maps in future mobility businesses, such as software-defined vehicles, autonomous driving and robotics.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]