Kia recorded its highest-ever quarterly revenue during the first quarter. However, operating profit fell by 12.2%.
Kia Corporation held a conference call on the 25th to present its business performance for the first quarter of 2025, reporting a 1.6% increase in sales compared to the previous year, with 772,648 units sold (wholesale basis).
The business performance includes ▲ sales of 28.175 trillion won (6.9%↑) ▲ operating profit of 3.086 trillion won (12.2%↓) ▲ ordinary profit of 3.2434 trillion won (14.3%↓) ▲ net profit (including non-controlling interest) of 2.3926 trillion won (14.8%↓) (IFRS consolidation basis).
Kia stated regarding its first-quarter performance, "As consumer preference for high-value vehicles such as hybrids continues to expand, pre-purchase demand in the U.S. market ahead of tariff implementation and strong sales in India and emerging markets led to an increase in global sales compared to the same period last year, setting a new record for the highest quarterly revenue."
It explained, "Despite the price increase due to a focus on high-value vehicle sales, reduced material costs from falling raw material prices, and favorable exchange rate effects from a weaker won, the impact of a very low incentive base in major overseas markets last year and the effect of sales mix due to the full-scale sales of the EV9 in the North American market offset this, leading to a slight decrease in profitability compared to the same period last year."
In the first quarter of 2025, Kia's sales recorded 134,564 units in the domestic market, a 2.4% decrease compared to the previous year, while overseas sales increased by 2.5% compared to the same period last year, totaling 638,084 units, resulting in a global sales increase of 1.6% compared to the same period last year (wholesale basis). Domestic sales slightly decreased compared to the same period last year due to the impact of K3 and Mohave model reductions, despite the popularity of high-profit RV models like Sorento, Carnival, Sportage, and the electric vehicle volume model EV3.
Overseas sales continued to show solid demand centered around North America, driven by the successful launch of the Sirus in India and strong sales in emerging markets such as the Middle East and Latin America, while sales in Europe decreased due to anticipation for the Sportage PE, which will be launched in the second quarter, despite the popularity of the EV3 and alleviation of vehicle supply constraints.
The first quarter revenue, which achieved the highest-ever quarterly sales, recorded 28.175 trillion won, reflecting an increase of 6.9% compared to the previous year due to rising average selling prices (ASPs) driven by an expanded market share of eco-friendly vehicles and RV sales, along with continued favorable exchange rate effects. The cost of sales ratio was recorded at 78.3%, an increase of 2.1 percentage points compared to the same period last year, while the selling and administrative expense ratio was recorded at 11.0%, an increase of 0.3 percentage points compared to the previous year, maintaining levels similar to the same period last year.
Despite the decrease compared to the same period last year, operating profit for the first quarter recorded 3.086 trillion won, a 12.2% decrease compared to the same period last year, impacted by the very low incentive base seen in the first quarter of last year, as well as sales and price increases centered on high-profit RV models, stabilization of raw material prices, and favorable exchange rate effects from a weaker won.
The operating profit margin was 10.7%, which is about more than twice the average operating profit margin of 5% for major global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for the first quarter.
Although it decreased compared to the same period last year, Kia has maintained a high-profit structure by achieving an operating profit of over 2 trillion won for ten consecutive quarters since the fourth quarter of 2022, along with a double-digit operating profit margin.
Kia's sales of eco-friendly vehicles in the first quarter recorded 174,000 units, a 10.7% increase compared to the previous year, primarily driven by the growing demand for hybrids (retail basis, rounded to the nearest hundred). The share of eco-friendly vehicle sales in total sales also increased by 1.5 percentage points to 23.1% compared to the previous year, with 104,000 hybrids (up 10.6% compared to the previous year), 14,000 plug-in hybrids (down 26.3% compared to the previous year), and 56,000 electric vehicles (up 27.0% compared to the previous year).
The market share of eco-friendly vehicle sales is recorded as follows: domestic 42.7% (compared to 41.3% in the same period last year), Western Europe 43.9% (compared to 40.9% in the same period last year), and the United States 18.4% (compared to 15.7% in the same period last year).
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