Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun celebrated three years in office on Oct. 14.
Under the stewardship of Chairman Chung, Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors saw their combined annual sales surpass 200 trillion won, becoming the global No. 3 automaker in terms of sales.
They also achieved qualitative growth by improving the profit margin.
Chairman Chung has been credited with raising Hyundai Motor Group’s standing during a period of transitioning to EVs.
Hyundai Motor Group ranked fifth by selling 2,772,082 units in global markets in the first half of 2020, following Toyota, Volkswagen Group, Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance and GM.
The Korean business group rose to the global No. 3 position in the first half of last year for the first time and retained the status through the first half of this year.
Hyundai Motor Group sold 3,657,382 units in the first half of this year to rank third, following Toyota and Volkswagen Group.
Hyundai Motor Group has made outstanding achievements, but the group is still facing key tasks, such as the software-defined vehicle (SDV) strategies and the sagging business in China.
Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors saw their combined sales surge to 129,963.3 billion won in the first half of 2023, a 1.8-fold jump from 73,114.1 billion won in the first half of 2020.
The Korean automaker group chalked up 229,086.5 billion won in annual sales last year, topping 200 trillion won for the first time.
Hyundai Motor Group saw operating profit jump from 2,043.7 billion won to 14,107.6 billion won, and the operating profit rate surge from 2.8 percent to 10.9 percent.
Hyundai Motor Group has been hitting the gas to become a first mover in the EV era.
IONIQ 5 and IONIQ 6, produced on the E-GMP, a platform for exclusively producing EVs, were designated as the 2023 World Car of the Year and the 2024 World Car of the Year, respectively.
Chairman Chung said, “Hyundai Motor Group had become a ‘fast follower’ in the period of internal combustion car, and all companies evenly stand on the starting line in the EV era, so we have to be a first mover to lead the global EV market with overwhelming performances and values surpassing its rival companies.”
At the time of developing the E-GMP, Chairman Chung stressed technology and quality beyond expectations despite delays and rising costs.
Chairman Chung decided to make massive investments in the production of EVs.
The automaker group has begun to implement projects to build new EV production lines in Georgia, the United States, and Ulsan, South Korea, and purpose-built vehicle (PBV) EV lineup at Kia Motor’s’ Autoland in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi-do.
Hyundai Motor Group has also set up joint-venture plants with Korean battery makers SK on and LG Energy Solution.
Chairman Chung emphasized that Hyundai Motor Group will have to translate a crisis into an opportunity to lead the future ahead others rather than following changes amid fears of a crisis.
From a long-term perspective, Hyundai Motor Group is stepping on the gas to explore future new businesses. The business group aims to offer greater life experiences under the vision “Progress for Humanity."
Another notable achievement since Chairman Chung took office is Hyundai Motor Group’s acquisition of Boston Dynamics, a U.S. robot maker.
Supernal, an American entity of Hyundai Motor, envisions a scalable, clean energy Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) ecosystem that will redefine movement, connectivity and life.
Its aim is to connect communities and save passenger valuable time by offering seamlessly integrated air mobility solutions.
This year, the business group announced a plan to expand its mobility business to space. Hyundai Motor Group has begun to develop self-driving mobility for lunar exploration in cooperation with six Korean research institutions of the space sector.
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