Carmakers enjoy sales boost in Sept.

Hyundai Motor Co., Korea’s leading automaker, said Tuesday that its September sales jumped 14.1 percent from a year earlier, fueled by strong overseas demand for its vehicles.

The carmaker said it sold a total of 359,560 vehicles last month, with overseas sales soaring 17.4 percent on-year to 303,307 units.

The increase, however, was offset by a 1.1 percent dip in domestic sales, which reached 56,253 units last month. The decrease was mainly due to South Korean consumers taking time off for Chuseok, the automotive group said. The lunar thanksgiving holiday fell in October last year.

Kia Motors Corp. said its sales in September rose 14.6 percent on-year, fueled by solid demand in both domestic and overseas markets.

The company sold 213,102 vehicles overall last month, compared with 183,054 vehicles a year earlier. Domestic sales rose 4.4 percent to 41,952 units last month, with exports shooting up 19.8 percent to 171,150 units. Exports include cars made in South Korea and overseas plants.

The carmaker said monthly sales were fueled by solid demand for its K5 mid-size sedan, Sportage R compact sport utility vehicle and Sorento R models.

The sales of GM Korea Co., the South Korean unit of U.S. automaker General Motors Co., rose 10.2 percent from a year earlier on solid consumer demand.

GM Korea sold 65,541 vehicles last month, compared with 59,470 units tallied for the same month in 2010, the company said in a statement. The figure also represents a gain of 20.4 percent from 54,444 units sold in August.

Domestic sales surged 17.3 percent on-year to 11,754 units last month, with exports gaining 10.2 percent to 53,787 units.

Renault Samsung Motors Co., the South Korean unit of French automaker Renault SA, said its sales surged 31.8 percent from a year earlier due to strong consumer demand for its vehicles.

Renault Samsung said it sold 23,938 vehicles last month, compared with 18,162 units sold in the same period last year.

Exports rose 60.7 percent to 12,723 units over the cited period, with local sales gaining 9.4 percent from a year earlier to 11,215 units.

Ssangyong Motor Co. said its sales jumped 37 percent on-year, helped by strong exports and domestic demand.

The company sold 9,504 vehicles last month, compared with 6,915 units a year earlier. Domestic sales rose 21.7 percent on-year to 3,000 units with exports shooting up 46.2 percent to 6,504 vehicles.

The carmaker, an affiliate of Indian sport utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., however, said overall sales fell 5.9 percent from a record high of 10.100 units reached in August.

(From news report)