South Korea's 5 automakers post 5.9% sales drop in August; Sorento tops domestic chart

South Korea's five major automakers all posted domestic sales declines in August, pushing combined local-market volume below 80,000 units. Hyundai Motor was hit particularly hard, with a union strike disrupting production and dragging its monthly global sales below 300,000 units for the first time in four years and seven months. Kia and GM Korea, by contrast, expanded overseas sales and maintained their growth momentum.

Combined domestic and overseas sales by Hyundai Motor, Kia, GM Korea, KG Mobility and Renault Korea totaled 589,412 units in August, down 5.9 percent from the same month a year earlier, according to figures released Tuesday.

The weakness was most pronounced at home. The five automakers sold a combined 79,753 units in the domestic market, down 28.2 percent from a year earlier and 26.1 percent from the previous month. All five recorded year-on-year domestic sales declines.

Overseas sales held up better. Combined foreign sales, including knock-down kits, came to 509,659 units, down 1.1 percent year on year. Kia and GM Korea posted gains of 7.6 percent and 12.4 percent, respectively, while Hyundai Motor (-8.5 percent), Renault Korea (-13.6 percent) and KG Mobility (-5.1 percent) all fell.

Hyundai Motor's decline was the steepest. The company sold 34,333 units domestically and 254,241 abroad in August, for a total of 288,574 units — a 14.2 percent drop from a year earlier.

The last time Hyundai Motor's monthly global sales fell below 300,000 units was January 2022, when it sold 282,656 vehicles.

Domestic sales were particularly weak, plunging 41.1 percent year on year to their lowest level in a decade. The slump reflected production disruptions caused by a union strike, compounded by buyers holding off on purchases ahead of upcoming new model launches.

During this year's wage negotiations, the Hyundai Motor union staged partial strikes and refused overtime before carrying out a full eight-hour walkout — the first of its kind in a decade. Total strike hours reached 60 per union member. Industry estimates put the number of vehicles that could not be produced during the period at about 55,200, with the resulting sales shortfall estimated at a minimum of 2.3 trillion won ($1.67 billion).

The production uncertainty stemming from the strike has since been resolved. The union voted Monday to ratify a tentative agreement, with 61.55 percent of members in favor. Management and labor agreed on a base pay increase of 100,000 won per month and a performance bonus of 400 percent of monthly salary plus 12.7 million won, wrapping up this year's wage talks.

Kia told a different story. The automaker sold 266,675 units in August, up 5.0 percent from a year earlier.

Domestic sales fell 7.6 percent to 40,213 units, but overseas sales rose 7.4 percent to 225,413 units. Sales of special-purpose vehicles surged 93.9 percent year on year to 1,049 units. Strong overseas performance more than offset the domestic shortfall, extending Kia's streak of global sales growth to six consecutive months.

GM Korea also benefited from exports. Total August sales reached 23,042 units, up 9.4 percent year on year. Domestic sales were limited to 731 units, a 39.4 percent decline, but overseas sales climbed 12.4 percent to 22,311 units.

The Chevrolet Trax Crossover led the export performance. Including derivative models, the Trax Crossover sold 18,223 units abroad, up 16.1 percent from a year earlier.

Renault Korea and KG Mobility both slowed at home and abroad. Renault Korea's August sales totaled 4,261 units, down 34.0 percent year on year. Domestic sales fell 47.7 percent to 2,024 units, while exports dropped 13.6 percent to 2,237 units.

KG Mobility sold 6,860 units in total — 2,300 domestically and 4,560 through exports. Domestic sales fell 43.3 percent from a year earlier, and exports slipped 5.1 percent. Even so, cumulative exports for the year remain ahead of the same period last year, driven by markets including Turkey and Hungary.

The Kia Sorento topped domestic sales by model in August, with 6,397 units sold, edging out the Hyundai Motor Grandeur at 5,931 units. The Hyundai Porter came third with 4,224 units, followed by the Kia Carnival at 4,186 units and the Sportage at 3,874 units.

On a cumulative basis through August, the Sorento leads the domestic passenger car and RV market with 67,976 units sold.