Hyundai Targets 10% Growth in Auto Sales

SEOUL - Hyundai Motor Group is targeting 10% growth in global vehicle sales this year as the South Korean company focuses on quality and safety.

Hyundai Motor Group, the world's No. 5 auto maker by sales, aims for affiliates Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. to sell 6.33 million units, up from an estimated 5.75 million units last year, group Chairman Chung Mong-koo told employees Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Analysts, however, expect the auto maker to surpass this year's target as it rolls out new models like Hyundai's Grandeur luxury sedan and Kia's Rio subcompact car and is able to raise prices as the global economy rebounds.

"Safety should come first," Mr. Chung said. "It is a key strategy to ensure survival in a fast-changing landscape and competitiveness." Toyota Motor Corp. last year recalled millions of vehicles in the key U.S. market. And Honda Motor Co., Chrysler LLC and Volkswagen AG recalled vehicles globally, prompting regulators world-wide to ask auto makers to tighten their production processes and improve safety standards.

Hyundai Motor sold 3.6 million units world-wide last year, while Kia Motors sold 2.1 million vehicles, the auto makers said Monday. The pair together accounted for a 78.4% share in the domestic market as of Dec. 31.

The group's 2011 sales target of 6.33 million units is a bit shy of the more than 6.4 million vehicles forecast by many brokerages. "Hyundai and Kia will be able to sell their models at better prices, based on improving brand recognition and expansion in production capacity," said Mo Sejun, an analyst at Hana Daetoo Securities.

Separately, Mr. Chung said Hyundai Steel Co. another affiliate of the group, plans to build a third blast furnace this year to expand its production capacity to 12 million metric tons from eight million tons. The expansion will help improve the supply of automotive steel to Hyundai Motor and Kia, he said.