Hyundai Motor scales down target share of domestic auto market

Hyundai Motor Co. aims to boost its domestic market share to 47 percent this year with its upgraded vehicles lineup, the company said Sunday.

The country’s top automaker took 45.2 percent of the Korean market in 2010, falling short of its 52 percent target for the year and the 50.7 percent it secured in 2009.

In contrast to a strong overseas performance, Hyundai’s domestic sales in 2010 fell 6.1 percent year-on-year due to strong showings by its sister firm Kia Motors Corp. and its rivals Reunault Samsung Motors Co. and GM Daewoo Auto & Technology.

In a meeting with employees on Saturday, Hyundai vice chairman Chung Eui-sun called for greater efforts to overcome last year’s sluggish performance and lift its presence at home.

“This year the local market will see cutthroat competition as import cars boosted by the Korea-EU FTA will push harder to the front,” he said in an event for sales promotion at the Hyundai Motor headquarters in Seoul.

“Do what you can to accomplish the goal by maximizing the effects of new cars such as the Grandeur, Veloster and Accent based on pride and confidence that we make up the world’s best automobile company.”

Chung, the only son of Chairman Chung Mong-koo, also outlined four key missions ― quality customer service, productivity improvement, the development of innovative ideas and employee responsibility ― in line with the firm’s new brand slogan “New Thinking, New Possibilities.”

By Shin Hyon-hee (heeshin@heraldcorp.com)