Han Media: Share is only 0.6%, Can Hyundai Motor Regain Its Glory in the Chinese Market?
On October 31, the Korean media outlet "Seoul News" published an article stating that despite the tariff disputes originating from the United States, Hyundai Motor proposed a global sales target of 5.55 million units by 2030 and announced its intention to revitalize the Chinese market, but some opinions pointed out that such an ambitious goal may be too aggressive.
Recently, Hyundai Motor CEO Jose Munoz proposed a goal to increase the proportion of sales in China to 8%. Hyundai Motor has set a target of selling 4.17 million units globally this year. Among them, the sales in the Chinese market are 167,000 units, accounting for 4%. By 2030, it aims to increase the sales proportion in China to 8%, expecting to sell about 444,000 units.
However, according to the China Passenger Car Association, the sales of Hyundai Motor in China last year were 125,127 units, with a market share of only 0.6%. When expanded to the entire Hyundai Motor Group, including Kia, the market share dropped from 7.5% in 2016 to 0.9% last year. In the first eight months of this year, the sales of the Hyundai Motor Group in the Chinese market were 131,341 units, with a market share of only 0.9%.
Hyundai Motor's factories in China have also been closed one after another.
But Hyundai Motor cannot give up China because it is the world's largest automobile market. Especially, the Chinese electric vehicle market shows a high growth trend. According to the Korea Automobile Mobility Industry Association (KAMA), the sales of pure electric vehicles in China last year reached 6.303 million units, an increase of 26.9% compared to 2023 (4.965 million units).
Recently, Hyundai Motor has been striving to increase its market share in China. Hyundai Motor plans to launch a compact electric SUV "Elexio" specifically for the Chinese market. It is expected that Elexio will be the first step in regaining the Chinese market share.
However, some in the industry believe that it will take some time for Hyundai Motor to regain its presence in the Chinese market. Because of the fierce competition in the Chinese market and the rapid development of Chinese brands. For example, in 2016, among the top ten brands in the domestic Chinese market, there were three Chinese companies (Changan, Great Wall, Geely), with a market share of 12.6%, but last year increased to four companies: BYD, Geely, Changan, and Great Wall, with a combined market share of 34.2%. It is difficult to compete with low-cost electric vehicle models like BYD, which is also a limitation.
Lee Heng-ju, a researcher at the Korea Automotive Research Institute, said: "Hyundai Motor is trying to offset the impact of the decline in exports to the United States, but the Chinese electric vehicle market poses a very tough challenge for Hyundai Motor." He predicted: "If they do not actively reduce costs, they will not be able to survive in China."
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1847470641028168/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.