Seoul, May 14, 2009 - (ACN Newswire) Kia Motors Corporation announced today that it has continued to gain market share in China, general markets and Korea posting sales growth of 39.3%, 13.1% and 5.8%, respectively.
By region, Kia posted year-on-year sales increases in China (18,169 units, a 39.3% year-on-year increase), general markets (23,902 units sold, a 13.1% year-on-year increase), and Korea (29,010 units sold, a 5.8% year-on-year increase).
Sales in the Middle East & Africa remained particularly strong in April with 15,462 units sold, representing a 39% year-on-year increase.
Cumulatively through the first four months of 2009, Kia's global sales increased in general markets, Korea and China. General markets experienced the largest gain, selling 86,859 units to date representing an 18.1% increase, while the Korean and Chinese markets showed cumulative year-on-year sales increases of 6.5% (108,416 units sold) and 3.8% (54,545 units sold), respectively.
So far in 2009, Kia's best selling model in overseas markets has been the C-segment Cerato (known as 'Spectra' or 'Forte' in some markets) with 65,727 units sold. The B-segment Rio comes in second with 45,932 units sold, followed closely by the Sportage compact SUV with 43,443 units sold. The C-segment ceed and the A-segment Picanto round up the top five with 38,579 and 27,349 units sold, respectively.
In terms of vehicle category sold overseas, Kias recreational vehicles achieved an increase of 3.6% year-on-year, selling 34,934 units in April.
Hyoung-Keun Lee, Senior Executive Vice President and COO of the International Business Division, Kia Motors Corporation, said, "Despite challenges within the automotive industry, Kia continued to see strong growth across multiple markets in April. These results are promising indicators for the second quarter and the rest of the year, and we are confident we will continue to see gains with the full introduction of the Soul urban crossover and the all-new Cerato (known as 'Forte' in some markets)."
* Includes figures from Western and Eastern European markets ** General markets includes the regions of Central and South America, the Caribbean, Asia (excluding China), the Pacific, Middle East and Africa
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About KIA Motors
Kia Motors Corporation, a maker of quality vehicles for the young-at-heart, was founded in 1944 and is Korea's oldest manufacturer of motor vehicles. As part of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Kia aims to become one of the world's premier automotive brands. Nearly 1.5 million vehicles a year are produced in 13 manufacturing and assembly operations in eight countries which are then sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering 172 countries. Kia today has over 40,000 employees worldwide and annual revenues of over US$14.5 billion. It is the major sponsor of the Australian Open and an official automotive partner of FIFA -- the governing body of the FIFA World Cup -- as well as a EUROTOP partner of UEFA. Kia Motors Corporation's brand slogan -- "The Power to Surprise" -- represents the company's global commitment to surpassing customer expectations through continuous automotive innovation. For more information, please visit www.kiamotors.com.
Source: KIA Motors
Contact:
Kia Motors Corporation, International Communications Manager Michael Choo Tel: +82-2-3464-5663 Email: mjc@kia.co.kr
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