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April 27, 2012

Hyundai Motor drives sharp Q1 net profit increase by 31%

SEOUL: South Korean carmaker Hyundai Motor increased quarterly net profit by 31 per cent to $2.15 billion as it bucked a sluggish industry trend in Europe and China and boosted sales in a recovering US market.


The profit is Hyundai's highest since it introduced a new accounting method in the first quarter of last year to better reflect earnings of its affiliated companies.

Shares in Hyundai have risen close to 13 per cent this month, hitting a life high of 269,500 won ($240), while rivals such as Toyota Motor, Honda Motor, Nissan Motor , Ford, General Motors and Volkswagen have all fallen.

Once derided for its poor quality, boxy cars, Hyundai, under Chairman Chung Mong-koo, has moved up the quality ladder and is envied by rivals for offering stylish models at affordable prices even during an industry downturn.

Its operating margin of around 10.5 per cent is more than four times that of Toyota.

The maker of the Sonata sedan and Elantra and i30 compacts has also benefited from a cheaper South Korean won and free trade deals with Europe and the United States.

The world's fifth-biggest automaker with affiliate Kia Motors posted a 2.45 trillion won ($2.15 billion) net profit for January-March, compared with a consensus forecast of 2.07 trillion won from Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S, and up from 1.88 trillion won a year earlier.

After a period of breakneck growth, Hyundai's engine is slowing, but not stalling.

Net profit is expected to grow 9 per cent to a record 8.85 trillion won this year, though that pace of growth will be just a quarter of last year's, according to Thomson Reuters SmartEstimates.

Hyundai shares rose 2.1 per cent on Thursday in a broader market that slipped 0.1 per cent.

indiatimes.com





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