Sales of Hyundai models in Europe continued to lead the market in July, showing an increase of 29.2 per cent over the same period in 2008 compared to a small industry increase of 2.6 per cent. The latest figures show Hyundai registrations have accounted for 2.3 per cent of total new car sales in Europe since the beginning of 2009, compared to 1.8 per cent over the first seven months of last year.
Hyundai maintained its trend of significant growth in major markets this year, with July sales in the UK, Italy and Germany more than double those of last year. The company also registered success in many other territories for the month, including increases in Greece and Austria.
Amidst widespread uncertainty over the potential impact on the automotive industry of changes to Europe’s various scrappage schemes, Hyundai is maintaining a focus on further building market share. “Our goal is to reach a 2.5 per cent share by the end of 2009, and the steps we are taking make that a real possibility – independent of the ‘scrappage-effect’,” comments Allan Rushforth, vice-president of Hyundai Motor Europe.
“The same factors that helped us increase our share before the scrappage schemes were introduced will also benefit us after they end,” says Rushforth. He points to Hyundai launching new products into segments where demand is highest, improving dealership identity, introducing a flexible manufacturing capability in Europe, increasing income from fleet businesses, and leveraging positive awareness of the brand.
“Having the right products is clearly very important,” adds Rushforth. “The trend for downsizing to high-value, high-quality compact cars will continue, and we fully expect our current ‘i-range’ of vehicles – the A-segment i10, B-segment i20, and C-segment i30 – to remain in high demand.”
To build on this momentum, in the first quarter of 2010 Hyundai will commence production of ix35 – the successor to the Tucson SUV, a model that sold 63.000 units per year in Europe at its peak and helped to establish Hyundai as a major player in the European SUV sector.
“The arrival of our new C-segment SUV will herald the start of a major product offensive that will bring greater breadth and depth to our model range. These new vehicles will enlarge the Hyundai range beyond our current i-models, and will attract new converts to our brand at a time when the European economy has begun climbing out of recession,” concludes Rushforth.