This file photo offered by Kia Corp. shows the flagship EV9 electric SUV.
SEOUL, Nov. 20 (Korea Bizwire) – Hyundai Motor Co. and its smaller affiliate Kia Corp. said Monday their combined vehicle sales in Britain rose 8.7 percent in the January-October period from a year earlier on increased sales of environmentally friendly models.
In the first 10 months, Hyundai and Kia sold a total of 173,428 vehicles in the European country, up from 159,541 units in the year-ago period, accounting for 10.8 percent of the local passenger vehicle market, the company said in a statement.
Hyundai’s figures include sales numbers of its independent Genesis brand.
This year, the South Korean carmakers expect their sales in Britain will exceed the record high annual sales of 186,625 units, posted in 2017, if the current pace of sales growth continues, the statement said.
In the 10-month period, their eco-friendly vehicle sales climbed 6.7 percent on-year to 80,442 units, helped by demand for Hyundai’s all-electric Kona EV, Tucson and Santa Fe gasoline hybrid models and Kia’s pure electric EV6 and EV9, Sorento and Sportage gasoline hybrid models.
All-electric, plug-in hybrid and gasoline hybrid models accounted for 36 percent of the 1,606,437 vehicles sold in Britain in the first 10 months. The ratio is up from 33.5 percent in the year-ago period, the statement said.
(Yonhap)
