Jung-hee Kim, Gounee Yang Global Economic News HYUNDAI Motor and Kia’s combined share of the Chinese auto market fell 1 percent from 3.1 percent (2.2 percent for Hyundai, 0.9 percent for Kia) a year ago to 2.1 percent (1.4 percent for Hyundai, 0.7 percent for Kia) in November this year, according to figures released by the China Passenger Car Association. Last month, retail sales of automobiles decreased 13 percent year on year to 1,845,000 units in China. The sales of passenger cars (including sedans, SUVs, and MPVs) fell 13 percent to 1,816,000 units and commercial vehicles fell to 28,000 units, similar to last year. However, Hyundai and Kia’s performance was far below the market average. Retail sales of Hyundai Motor Beijing fell 42 percent year on year to 26,000 units in November, and Dongfeng Kia fell 30 percent to 13,000 units. Sales of Hyundai cars have significantly decreased in the Chinese market since 2016. Hyundai is reorganizing its China business by selling its Beijing plant 1, the Hyundai’s first global production plant. Hyundai also launched various new models such as the Genesis brand to boost sales in China, which has strong influence in the global electric vehicle (EV) market. However, Hyundai’s performance has continued to be sluggish, with only 69 units of the strategic EV model “Mistra EV,” released earlier this year, sold from March to September. | 