Hyundai Motor Group Rises to Third in Global Sales
Emerges as a "Global Frontier"
Turning the Vision of "Freedom of Mobility" into Reality
Five years after Chung Euisun became chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, the combined operating profit of Hyundai Motor and Kia has increased more than fivefold. Revenue grew by 120 trillion won, reflecting both quantitative and qualitative growth. Under Chairman Chung’s leadership, Hyundai Motor Group has solidified its position as a global top-tier player through a rapid electrification strategy, strengthening its hybrid lineup, and expanding sales of high value-added models.
According to Hyundai Motor Group on October 13, the combined revenue of Hyundai Motor and Kia increased by 73%, from 163.8924 trillion won in 2019 to 282.68 trillion won in 2024. During the same period, operating profit soared from 5.6152 trillion won to 26.9067 trillion won. Notably, the companies set new records for annual revenue and operating profit for three consecutive years starting in 2022.
In the first half of this year, Hyundai Motor and Kia achieved a combined operating profit of 13.0086 trillion won amid a globally uncertain business environment, ranking second worldwide for the first time on a half-year basis. Their operating margin stood at 8.7%, more than double that of competitors such as Volkswagen (4.2%).
Hyundai Motor and Kia have established themselves as key players in the global eco-friendly vehicle market, leveraging differentiated competitiveness in electric vehicles, which surpassed 2 million cumulative global sales in the first half, and hybrid vehicles (including PHEVs), which exceeded 600,000 units in half-year sales for the first time.
High value-added models such as SUVs and Genesis also contributed to growth. Over the past five years, the average price of recreational vehicles sold overseas by Hyundai Motor and Kia increased by 114% (from 34.59 million won to 73.87 million won) and 58% (from 40.45 million won to 63.83 million won), respectively.
Genesis, whose brand launch was personally overseen by Chairman Chung, has been recognized for its quality and design competitiveness, establishing itself as a unique luxury brand. Its global sales have also surged from 77,135 units in 2019 to 229,532 units in 2024.
This growth is underpinned by Chairman Chung’s leadership. Marking his fifth anniversary as chairman on October 14, Chung is credited with steering Hyundai Motor Group through uncertainty with a bold vision for the future, breaking down industry boundaries, and redefining the possibilities of mobility, driving disruptive transformation and evolving the group into a “global frontier.”
Chairman Chung took office as chairman of Hyundai Motor Group in October 2020, strategically navigating the COVID-19 pandemic crisis and securing the group’s position among the global top three in sales. From 2021, the year after his inauguration, he was consecutively named “Person of the Year” by influential global media outlets such as Newsweek, Autocar, MotorTrend, and Automotive News.
The growth of Hyundai Motor Group has translated into large-scale domestic investment and job creation, making a significant contribution to the Korean economy. According to CEO Score, Hyundai Motor Group’s economic contribution in Korea in 2024 ranked highest among all major domestic conglomerates. This year, the group is investing a record 24.3 trillion won domestically and is considering hiring about 10,000 young people next year, following the recruitment of 7,200 this year.
Chairman Chung has also fundamentally transformed Hyundai Motor Group from a software perspective. He believed that a virtuous cycle of internal change and external growth was essential for the group to continue leading the global mobility industry. The shift from business suits to jeans and T-shirts symbolizes the establishment of a horizontal and creative organizational culture, as well as a work style that embraces persistent challenges without fear of failure.
At a town hall meeting in Europe this year, Chairman Chung emphasized, “The organizational culture created by all employees will become a solid foundation for realizing infinite possibilities,” adding, “If we trust each other and consider how to maximize everyone’s capabilities, we can achieve great results together.”
Employee satisfaction has also risen sharply. In the group’s annual organizational and work satisfaction survey, the average score jumped from 63.2 points in 2019, the year before Chung’s inauguration, to 78.6 points in 2024. The voluntary turnover rate (as of 2024, domestic) was the lowest in Korea, at 0.39% for Hyundai Motor and 0.35% for Kia.
Chairman Chung has expressed his determination to continue striving for the happiness of customers, future generations, and ultimately all of humanity.
Selected as the recipient of Automotive News’ “100th Anniversary Award,” Chairman Chung stated, “Innovation should be human-oriented, and true progress is meaningful when it improves people’s lives.” He added, “Hyundai Motor Group will continue its journey of innovation for a prosperous life for humanity and the planet through creative, sustainable, customer-centric solutions.”
Accordingly, Chairman Chung is actively expanding business areas for the future of humanity through aggressive investments in eco-friendly vehicles and various new businesses.
In 2019, Hyundai Motor Group sold only about 370,000 eco-friendly vehicles, but last year this figure increased nearly fourfold to approximately 1.41 million units. Since 2022, annual sales have exceeded 1 million units, and cumulative eco-friendly vehicle sales, which stood at about 1.38 million units in 2019, surpassed 7 million units in the first half of this year. The proportion of eco-friendly vehicles in total sales also soared from 5.1% in 2019 to 19.4% last year. In the global market, two out of every ten Hyundai Motor Group vehicles sold were eco-friendly models.
To further expand its dominance in the global eco-friendly vehicle market, Hyundai Motor Group plans to: ▲ sell 5.63 million eco-friendly vehicles by 2030 ▲ expand its hybrid lineup to 28 models by 2030 ▲ launch an extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) in 2027 ▲ introduce next-generation EV platforms ▲ and continue launching locally tailored EVs such as the Ioniq 3.
The group is also boldly entering new fields, most notably robotics. Chairman Chung has consistently emphasized the need to realize robots as companions in real life and to expand the boundaries of mobility, ultimately improving the quality of human life.
Hyundai Motor Group established a Robotics Lab in 2018 and, to internalize world-class robotics technology, acquired Boston Dynamics, a leading global robotics company, in 2021. As a first mover in future mobility, the group is proactively integrating robotics into the mobility industry value chain to expand the customer mobility experience into entirely new realms.
To this end, Hyundai Motor Group plans to build a robot factory in the United States with a capacity of 30,000 units, producing Boston Dynamics’ flagship products such as the humanoid robot “Atlas,” the quadruped robot “Spot,” and the logistics robot “Stretch.”
Hyundai Motor Group is also leading the creation of an innovative smart manufacturing environment where humans and robots coexist. By using the Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Center Singapore (HMGICS) as a testbed, the group is integrating robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies into key production bases such as Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA), Hyundai Motor Ulsan EV-only plant, and Kia Hwaseong EVO Plant, thereby establishing a human-centered work environment where employees and robots collaborate.
In addition, Hyundai Motor Group is focusing on building a sustainable future through hydrogen. Chairman Chung has consistently stated that the transition to hydrogen energy is not for the present but for future generations, presenting a sincere vision for hydrogen.
To expand its business across the entire hydrogen value chain-from production to storage, transportation, and utilization-Hyundai Motor Group launched “HTWO,” the world’s first hydrogen brand and business platform. Through this, the group provides solutions at every stage of the hydrogen value chain and is establishing a core implementation system for realizing a hydrogen society.
In 2019, Chairman Chung served as co-chair of the Hydrogen Council, an alliance of leading companies for hydrogen economic development, leading the development of the global hydrogen industry agenda. Since 2024, Vice Chairman Jang Jaehoon has taken over as co-chair, further strengthening the global cooperation framework.
A Hyundai Motor Group official stated, “Having achieved remarkable growth over the past five years, Hyundai Motor Group is seeking various solutions for key issues such as global trade risk management, responding to slowing EV demand, and improving the profitability of new businesses to further solidify its status as a top-tier global company. Through bold investment and research, we are establishing a profit base for major new businesses such as robotics, hydrogen, software-defined vehicles (SDVs), purpose-built vehicles (PBVs), and advanced air mobility (AAM). At the same time, we will secure the core talent needed in each field and spread a culture of innovation throughout the organization.”
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