Friday, October 28, 2011

Hyundai profit increases 21%, helped by sedan, SUV sales

SEOUL (Bloomberg) -- Hyundai Motor Co. said third-quarter profit rose 21 percent, helped by sales of Sonata sedans and Tucson SUVs. Net income climbed to 1.92 trillion won ($1.7 billion) in the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with 1.59 trillion won a year earlier, the Korean automaker said in a statement today.

South Korea's largest maker of automobiles was projected to report profit of 1.89 trillion won, based on the average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Chief Financial Officer Lee Won Hee said Hyundai Motor will probably sell more than 4 million vehicles this year as they crank up production from factories in markets such as China.

The gains will probably lead Hyundai Motor to post record earnings this year and exceed profits generated by Japan's Toyota Motor Corp., according to analyst estimates.

"The earnings reaffirmed Hyundai's outstanding competitiveness in overseas markets," said Lee Jin Woo, senior fund manager at Seoul-based KTB Asset Management Co., which oversees $4.6 billion assets including Hyundai shares. "Industry demand may slow next year amid the global economic downturn but I still expect Hyundai to fare better than global rivals."

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