"China is the fastest-moving market. With a humble approach, we will increase production and sales in China." (Chung Euisun, chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, in an interview after a Korea-China business forum in January)
Hyundai Motor Group is regrouping as it declares a renewed push into China, a market it says it cannot afford to abandon as the country emerges as the world’s largest future-mobility arena. After a peak near 2 million vehicles a year and a long slide since, the group is betting on China-tailored mobility products that closely reflect local consumer lifestyles.
According to the auto industry on Monday, Hyundai Motor and Kia sold 227,000 vehicles in China last year, up 11.8% from a year earlier. Even so, their share of China’s domestic market was 0.9%, remaining below 1% for a 10th straight year — a weak showing for the world’s No. 3 automaker.
Hyundai Motor Group entered China in 2002 and hit a high in 2016, selling a combined 1.8 million Hyundai and Kia vehicles. Sales then fell sharply to 1.15 million in 2017 after the THAAD dispute, and dropped to 930,000 in 2019, breaking below the 1 million mark. The decline continued: 510,000 in 2021, 325,000 in 2023 and 203,000 in 2024.
Analysts cite multiple factors behind the slump, including misreading market trends, a delayed shift to electric vehicles and insufficient localization. Some also point to lingering negative perceptions tied to an early focus on taxi fleet sales that helped cement an image as a low-priced imported brand.
One industry official said that as China’s auto market matured and split quickly into premium and budget segments, Hyundai lost its footing — squeezed by German brands on prestige and by Chinese automakers on price. The official added that while China’s government pushed an EV transition, Hyundai stuck with internal-combustion models, and misjudged demand by focusing on sedans even as rivals expanded sport utility vehicle lineups.
Still, expanding its China presence is essential if Hyundai is to rise to the top globally, said Park Cheol-wan, a professor at Seojeong College. “If you win in China, you secure a foundation to win worldwide,” Park said, urging the company to acknowledge past failures and craft strategies to beat Chinese firms in batteries and electric vehicles.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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