This photo, provided by Hyundai Motor Co., shows company CEO Jose Munoz. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Feb. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — Jose Munoz, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of South Korea’s leading carmaker Hyundai Motor Co., has been named the most influential figure in the global automotive industry by U.S. automotive publication MotorTrend, its website showed Friday.
The publication named Munoz as the 2025 MotorTrend Person of the Year, crediting him as “leading Hyundai through years of record growth in North American sales, market share, revenue and profitability.”
A native of Spain, the 56-year-old is the first-ever foreign national to lead the South Korean automaker.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk ranked second and U.S. President Donald Trump came in third over his new policy visions putting automakers on alert. General Motors CEO Mary Barra and RJ Scaringe, head of American electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Rivian Automotive, came next, in that order.
MotorTrend annually publishes the list to recognize the 50 most influential figures in the global automotive industry, selecting one individual as Person of the Year.
Founded in 1949, MotorTrend is considered one of the leading automotive publications, with over 1 million copies circulated monthly in print and digital formats.
In 2023, Euisun Chung, executive chair of Hyundai Motor Group, was also named MotorTrend’s Person of the Year.
(Yonhap)
