Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. both reported double-digit growth in their U.S. sales in July, backed by strong demand for electric vehicles, data from the U.S. units of the South Korean carmakers have shown.
Hyundai sold 66,527 vehicles last month on a wholesale basis, up 10 percent from the 60,631 recorded a year earlier, according to Hyundai Motor America on Tuesday (local time).
Its retail sales reached 61,745 in July, marking a 2 percent on-year increase and the best-ever July performance, Hyundai said.
Electric vehicle sales rose 49 percent in the same period, accounting for 20 percent of its total monthly retail sales. SUVs took up 74 percent of the retail volume.
By model, the Santa Fe hybrid EV posted 205 percent on-year sales growth, with that of the Tucson plug-in hybrid growing 44 percent over the cited period. Sales of the IONIQ 5 rose 109 percent.
Hyundai’s cumulative U.S. sales currently stand at 461,140 vehicles this year, up 14 percent from a year earlier.
Kia’s July wholesale volume came to 70,930, growing 14 percent from the previous year, with retail sales reaching 66,485, up 13 percent on-year.
Its EV and SUV sales jumped 72 percent and 17 percent, respectively, driven by solid demand for the Niro hybrid crossover SUV, the Carnival minivan and the Seltos compact SUV.
Source: Yonhap News Agency