Kia's May sales rise 1.7 pc on SUV demand, India market sees over 14 pc growth

New Delhi/Seoul, June 2 (IANS) Kia, South Korea's second-largest automaker by sales, said on Monday its sales gained 1.7 per cent last month from a year earlier on steady overseas demand for sport utility vehicles (SUVs).

Kia, a smaller affiliate of local industry leader Hyundai Motor Co., sold 269,148 vehicles in May, up from 264,699 units a year ago, the company said in a press release.

Domestic sales declined 2.4 percent on-year to 45,003 units last month, while overseas sales climbed 2.6 percent to 223,817, it said, reports Yonhap news agency.

From January to May, sales rose 2.3 percent to 1,316,233 units from 1,286,496 in the same period last year.

Domestic sales decreased 0.4 percent to 230,420 units from 231,237, while overseas sales increased 2.9 percent to 1,084,368 from 1,053,674.

The Sportage compact SUV was the bestselling model in May, with 48,091 units sold globally, followed by the subcompact Seltos with 21,889 units sold.

Meanwhile, Kia India maintained its strong growth momentum for the fifth consecutive month by reporting 22,315 vehicle dispatches in the domestic market for May. This marks a year-on-year growth of 14.43 per cent, compared to 19,500 units sold in May 2024.

Hardeep Singh Brar, SVP and National Head of Sales and Marketing, at Kia India, said, "Our strong sales performance in May, reflects the growing resonance of Kia’s diverse offerings across segments”.

“This momentum validates our ongoing efforts to expand and strengthen our product portfolio in line with evolving customer needs,” he added.

Kia India has completed almost 1.5 million vehicle dispatches from its Anantapur plant, including over 1.2 million domestic sales and over 3.67 lakh exports. With more than 4.5 lakh connected cars on Indian roads, it is among the connected car leaders in the country.

--IANS

na/