The Korean automobile giant, Hyundai Motor Co., reported that its subsidiary, Hyundai Motor America experienced a dip in total sales in January compared to the same period last year. This drop in sales has been attributed to economic challenges and high-interest rates, resulting in a difficult retail environment.
In January, sales have experienced a declining by 9 percent year-on-year, leading to total units sold coming down to 47,543 from the 52,001 units sold in the same period last year.
However, it's not all bad news for Hyundai, their overall sales of electric vehicle demonstrated growth, experiencing an increase of 42 percent. The sales of battery-electic and plug-in hybrid models also increased, witnessing a combined surge of 77 percent from the previous year.
This growth was further driven by the strong sales of models like Santa Fe PHEV, with an increase of 273 percent, Tucson PHEV sales saw an increase of 927 percent and Kona EV sales rose by 37 percent.
Reflecting on the situation, the CEO of Hyundai Motor America, Randy Parker said, "January was a challenging month, following a record-breaking 2023. The economic challenges and interest rates posed quite a tough retail environment…"
In other updates, Hyundai shares saw a slight increase of 0.33% to close at $42.55 on Wednesday.
