Hyundai and Kia combined sales in China dip below 10,000 units in September

September saw Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. together sell just under 10,000 cars in China, the first time this year the combined figure fell below that threshold. Hyundai’s sales fell about 47% from a year earlier to roughly 4,000 units, and Kia’s dropped 31% to about 5,000. Their joint sales represent a 39% decline, pushing their market share to 0.6%, far from the more than 10% they held in the mid-2010s. The decline persists even though both manufacturers have introduced electric vehicles tailored for Chinese consumers, including Hyundai’s Elexio electric SUV and the Ioniq V model, which sold 251 and 558 units respectively in recent periods. The data, sourced from Hana Securities and the China Passenger Car Association, highlight ongoing challenges for the South Korean automakers in the Chinese market.