SOUTH KOREA: Hyundai eyes 15.1% sales boost

Hyundai Motor reportedly is targeting to sell 15.1% more vehicles this year, driven by the introduction of new models at home and abroad.

The Korea Times said the automaker, in a presentation file provided to analysts, aims to sell 2.68m vehicles this year, compared with 2.33m units estimated to have been sold last year.

The 2006 sales target breaks down into 630,000 units for domestic sales, 1.13m units for export and 922,000 units manufactured overseas, the report added.

Revenues from domestic assembly plants are expected to reach 30 trillion won (US$30.5bn) and those from overseas plants are forecast to total 11.4 trillion won, the company said.

Compared with last year’s revenue estimates, revenues from domestic plants are up 9.7% and those from overseas plants are 51.6% higher, Hyundai Motor said.

The condition of the foreign exchange rate this year is far worse than last year,” said Hwang Yoo-no, executive vice president of Hyundai Motor’s finance team, announcing the presentation file, according to the Korea Times.

The 2006 business targets were based on the company’s prediction that the average exchange rate for the US dollar may be 950 won this year, the executive reportedly said.

The Korean currency is showing signs of sharp appreciation against the dollar this year, despite the government’s firm stance to curb the won’s strength. The rise in the won’s value against the dollar raises the price of Hyundai’s cars overseas, hurting exports.

On Monday, the won rose 3.2 won to close at 979.3 against the dollar, representing the highest level in almost eight years.

To hedge the currency risk, Hwang said Hyundai Motor will cut the portion of dollar transactions to 60% this year, compared with 70% last year, according to the Korea Times.