Hyundai Motor and Kia achieved record sales in India for the first quarter of this year. India is the world’s third-largest automobile market after China and the United States.
According to monthly sales statistics from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) on the 13th, Hyundai sold 153,550 units in India in the first quarter of this year, while Kia sold 70,576 units. Kia's sales volume is the highest since it entered the market in August 2019.
The combined sales of both companies reached 229,126 units, an increase of 1.5% compared to last year's first quarter record of 225,686 units (Hyundai 160,317 units and Kia 65,369 units).
The increase in sales volume was influenced by the sales of locally adapted models and sports utility vehicles (SUVs).
In the first quarter of this year, Hyundai and Kia's SUV sales reached 181,758 units, accounting for about 80% of the total. Among these, Creta, Venue, Sonet, and Celtos made up more than half.
To continue the increase in sales volume, Hyundai and Kia established a mid- to long-term strategy tailored to the local market. Hyundai is preparing to operate the Pune plant in Maharashtra, which it acquired from General Motors in the U.S. in 2023, in the second half of this year.
Hyundai also became the first overseas subsidiary of Hyundai to be listed on the Indian securities market. In December of last year, it signed a memorandum of understanding with Kia to jointly establish an innovation center with the Indian Institute of Technology.