Hyundai Motor's first-half sales fall below 2 million units for first time in 4 years

Hyundai Motor's global sales in the first half of this year fell below 2 million units for the first time in four years, as production disruptions from a domestic parts supplier fire compounded weakness in some export markets, pushing total sales down about 5 percent from a year earlier.

Hyundai Motor disclosed Tuesday it sold 1,966,267 vehicles worldwide from January through June, down 4.9 percent from 2,066,993 units in the same period last year.

The last time Hyundai Motor's first-half sales fell below 2 million units was in 2022, when it sold 1,879,041 vehicles. The automaker had maintained the 2-million-unit threshold for three consecutive years — selling 2,081,521 in 2023, 2,063,844 in 2024 and 2,066,993 in 2025 — before slipping back below the mark this year with 1,966,267 units.

The domestic market posted the steepest decline. Hyundai Motor sold 316,713 vehicles in South Korea during the first half, down 10.8 percent from a year earlier. Overseas sales fell 3.7 percent to 1,649,554 units. Of the total decline of 100,726 units, domestic sales accounted for 38,187 units and overseas sales for 62,539 units.

Breaking down domestic sales by segment, passenger cars held up relatively well, with 102,372 units sold — up 0.3 percent year on year. Recreational vehicles, however, fell 11.3 percent to 114,326 units, and Genesis sales dropped 23.1 percent to 47,024 units.

Commercial vehicles also struggled. Sales of light commercial vehicles came to 42,459 units, while medium and heavy buses and trucks totaled 10,532 units — down 13.4 percent and 23.6 percent, respectively.

Eco-friendly vehicles were a relative bright spot. Hyundai Motor sold 123,198 eco-friendly vehicles in South Korea during the first half, up 5.0 percent from a year earlier. Electric vehicle sales jumped 46.5 percent to 39,575 units, and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle sales surged 288.3 percent to 2,815 units, boosted by the launch of the new Nexo. Hybrid sales, however, slipped 9.8 percent to 80,808 units.

A major factor behind the weak sales was the production disruption caused by a fire in March at Daejeon-based Anjeon Industrial, a parts supplier. Although the fallout from the fire was resolved by June, the roughly six-week period during which production of certain models was constrained weighed on cumulative first-half figures. Analysts also cited a decline in exports to some regions, including the Middle East, and a lack of significant new-model momentum as contributing factors.

Monthly sales showed signs of recovery in June. Hyundai Motor sold 58,232 vehicles domestically and 280,081 overseas last month, for a total of 338,313 units. While that was down 5.9 percent from June last year, it was up 3.8 percent from May.

Domestic sales fell 6.2 percent year on year but rose 28.4 percent from the previous month. Among sedans, the Grandeur led with 10,062 units, followed by the Sonata at 5,102 and the Avante at 4,316, for a combined 20,253 units. In the RV segment, the Palisade sold 4,211 units, the Santa Fe 4,068 and the Tucson 3,285, for a total of 20,720 units.

In commercial vehicles, light models including the Porter (3,828 units) and Staria (3,035 units) totaled 6,948 units, while medium and heavy buses and trucks accounted for 2,375 units. Genesis sold 7,936 units in total, led by the G80 at 2,944 units, the GV70 at 2,428 and the GV80 at 1,840.

Overseas sales of 280,081 units were down 5.8 percent from a year earlier and essentially flat compared with the previous month, edging down 0.1 percent.

Analysts expect the sales trend to gradually improve in the second half. "Production disruptions caused by the parts supplier fire began normalizing in June, with vehicles starting to reach customers," said Ha Neul, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities. "The second half has new model launches lined up, including the Ioniq 3 in Europe and, domestically, the Grandeur hybrid, the all-new Avante and the Santa Fe facelift."

A Hyundai Motor spokesperson said the newly launched The New Grandeur has been drawing a strong response from customers. "We will launch competitive new models in the second half of this year, including the All-New Avante, and work to expand our market share through production and sales optimization strategies," the spokesperson said.