Genesis eyes 10% increase in global sales this year

Genesis, the luxury brand of Hyundai Motor Co., said Thursday it targets a 10 percent on-year increase in sales this year spurred by new models.

Genesis aims to sell 220,000 units globally this year, up from 200,000 sold last year, Hyundai Motor President and Chief Executive Chang Jae-hoon told reporters on the sidelines of the G90 sedan's launching event. 

"Helped by improved product lineup and increased SUV models, Genesis already made it to the top 10 luxury brands, beating (Honda Motor's) Acura and (Nissan Motor's) Infiniti models," said Chang, who is in charge of the Genesis brand.

Genesis aims to sell an average of 20,000 units a year to raise its market share to 8.6 percent in the world's annual flagship sedan market of 230,000 units in 2023 from 3.1 percent in 2021, the executive said. 

To help achieve the aim, the all-new G90 flagship sedan went on sale in the domestic market on Thursday, with its overseas launches scheduled in markets such as the United States, Europe and China this year.

The all-wheel drive G90 is a fully revamped model following its face-lift in 2018. It comes with a 3.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine and an eight-speed automatic transmission.

The model is priced at 91 million won ($76,000), and its long-wheelbase version sells at 166 million won. The prices rise up to 130 million won and 180 million won, respectively, depending on options.

The G90 competes with Mercedes-Benz's S Class sedan and BMW's 7 series sedan, Genesis said. 

Under the brand's design philosophy of Athletic Elegance, the new G90 features an extension of Genesis' "two-line" design with two sets of lights in the front and rear.

The model has a short front overhang with a long clamshell hood that spans the entire width of the car. Its front exterior consists of a new crest grille and sleek two-line lamps located on both sides of the grille.

The sides are almost completely devoid of adornment, with a parabolic line that runs from the front to the rear, while in the rear, there are separate rows of light emitting diode bars stretching across the entire width of the bumper and tailgate.

The Genesis lineup is composed of the electric GV60, the GV80 and GV70 SUVs, and the G90, G80, electric G80 and G70 sedans.

The executive said Genesis is on track to electrification but does not have any immediate plan to release the all-electric G90 model.

Hyundai Motor Group recently raised its global EV sales target to 1.7 million units in 2026 from 1 million units. The target figure combines sales from Hyundai Motor, its affiliate Kia Corp. and Genesis. (Yonhap)