Building on solid financial results in the fourth quarter of last year, Hyundai has announced today that it turned a net profit of about $1.02b (as in billion) in Q1 2010. That shatters a previous record of $650m, recorded in the second quarter of last year, and eclipses last year’s $203m Q1 net profit. According to the Detroit News, Hyundai raised sales revenue by nearly 40 percent last quarter, with global gross receipts hitting $7.6b. Sales volume was up 36.6 percent, to 842,037 units. Though the Chinese and Indian markets drove growth with 48 and 34 percent volume increases respectively, the big news comes from the US, where Hyundai’s volume grew 78.3 percent and revenue gained 61.5 percent. And if Hyundai’s margins seem surprisingly attractive, consider that the dollar’s recent declines against the Korean Won bled off some of that US-market profit. Oh, and that billion-dollar profit doesn’t include results from Hyundai’s sister-firm Kia, which reports Q1 financials tomorrow. Get down with your bad self, Hyundai!
Free market economics are a simple process. Or so they say. Dive in, and whoever survives, survives. Let the market decide. According to the pure tenets of free market economics, it’s important that the government shows no favoritism. Yeah, right.
The Korea Times reports that President Lee Myung-Bak is showing more than just interest in Hyundai-Kia. Read More >
Last evening, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood declared he’d be seeking the maximum penalty from Toyota. That’s $16.4m, because “they knowingly hid a dangerous defect for months from U.S. officials and did not take action to protect millions of drivers and their families.” That’s the largest civil penalty the U.S. Department of Transportation has ever sought. According to Reuters, “previously, the largest fine was $1 million against General Motors Co for failing to promptly recall windshield wipers in 2002-2003 model vehicles.” One would think Toyota can pay that out of petty cash. But the matter has Toyota concerned. Plaintiff lawyers are rubbing their hands. Read More >
From the unintended consequences dept. comes yet another humdinger. Some keep saying the recent Toyota spat was intended to put the Japanese competition in its place. Instead, it ups the competitiveness of Korean and Chinese auto makers, says The Nikkei [sub]. Read More >
Dang! Daimler thinks of “moving several key divisions from Berlin to its headquarters in Stuttgart to cut costs,” reports Bloomberg. There goes another source of inside intelligence: One just had to hang out at the bar of the Hyatt next to the Daimler Quartier at the Potsdamer Platz, and when there was absolutely no info to be written for TTAC, a few drinks later, we had some. The flip charts in the conference rooms of the Hyatt also were fertile grounds: They always forgot to remove their scribblings. Where will we get future sales strategies from now on? Ah, the good old times …. Read More >
Joel Ewanick is a name you’re probably not familiar with. I wouldn’t blame you, he works in Marketing, which is a pretty dull affair. However, you may be familiar with his work. He helped bring Hyundai to the mainstream with clever and well executed marketing plans. The Hyundai Assurance Plan (lose your job, return your car) was his idea. Not to mention during 2009, when the car industry was failing, his marketing plans helped Hyundai increase market share and even turn a good profit. Advertising during the Superbowl? His idea. Advertising at the Academy Awards? His idea again. Hyundai’s market share grew from 3 percent to 4.4 percent as of February (according to data from Autodata). To cap it all, he was named Marketer of the Year 2009 (the year of carmageddon) by Advertsing Age. So why am I writing about him? Well, he’s leaving Hyundai. Read More >
All kinds of strange news are coming from GM’s Korean foster child Daewoo. Two days ago, Daewoo CEO Mike Arcamone announced: “In 2010, GM Daewoo will be profitable. That is my target.” That didn’t get much traction. Reporters wanted to know how bad last year’s numbers were. Arcamone remained tight-lipped. He admitted red ink for 2009, how much remains anybody’s guess. In 2008, it was $773m worth of red. Last October Daewoo-is-me had to be bailed out by the bailed-out GM to the tune of $413m. Arcamone has some soothing news: “We currently do not seek any other financial support from our creditors.” The operative word is “currently.” There is one way to stop the hemorrhage for good: Pack it in. Read More >
Volkswagen’s range of BlueMotion cars are their flagship “Look at us! We’re bluegreen!” vehicles. They employ techniques like a remapped engine, longer gear ratios and better aerodynamics to wring the last bit of mpg out of an ICU. The Blue Oval of Ford has the EcoBoost systems which are engines with a turbocharger or direct injection. That’s said to give power and torque on par with larger engine sizes, resulting in better fuel consumption and lower emissions. Daimler has its Bluetec, a slightly disgusting technology that requires overpriced urea to be added to your Benz – urea, as the name indicates, originally was a by-product of urine. (Now why didn’t the hyperkilometering AutoBild think of THAT?) Anyway, Hyundai wants in on the act. Read More >
When Toyota stumbled there were (muted) shouts of glee around the car producing world. “Yay! They fell flat on their face! Let’s pick up the pieces.” Well, nobody said it openly, but action speaks louder than words: Ford and Hyundai revved up their “quality” aspects (wink, wink) GM and Chrysler fired up their incentives (it’s all on the taxpayers, so who cares?) Ford and Hyundai said “to hell with subliminal messages” and followed with the money. Even Nissan couldn’t help themselves and offered a bounty to deserting Toyotaphiles. February came and went and Toyota only registered a 9 percent drop (year on year after the carpocalypse). This was quite confusing. Especially given the fact that production had been halted and dealer stock was quarantined until fixed. Analysts had predicted double digit drops and were surprised themselves. Everyone had expected something out of a George Romero film to happen to Toyota. So, suddenly, this turns into an Agatha Christie story. “Who benefited from Toyota’s stumble”? Read More >
While Toyota is trying to convince the American public that they’re as American as losing at hockey Wal-Mart, Hyundai is pulling the same stunt over at the other side of the pond. Forbes reports that Hyundai wants to become a card carrying member of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA). Read More >
Toyota may record “a double-digit drop in the automaker’s U.S. sales for February,” says The Nikkei [sub] today. The Nikkei bolsters the assessment with interviews at dealerships in the U.S.A., but knowing the Nikkei, a sales droid in northern California is not their only source.
The Nikkei notes that “Toyota was the only major automaker to suffer a double-digit sales decline in the U.S. last month. Its sales were down 15.8 percent from a year earlier, compared with the 24.4 percent and 14.6 percent growth enjoyed by Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co..”
A continuation of this trend would be extremely dangerous for Toyota. We are comparing with the absolutely worst times of carmageddon, and if you are double digits below carmageddon, you roast in hell. Read More >
The unions have reasons for heightened annoyance. Insideline reports that Avtotor may buy the closed down Izhavto plant (Izhavto filed for bankruptcy in August 2009) in Izhevsk, Udmurt Republic, to build Hyundai and Kia vehicles. Avtotor is one of Russia’s largest assemblers of cars that come as kits. And why would that be of concern to Korea’s metal workers? Read More >
If you were a company at time of recession, belt-tightening and countries on the verge of bankruptcy, you’d think that registering record profits and growing global market share at times like these would keep everyone at your company happy, right? Wrong. Members of Hyundai Motor’s union are angry. Livid. Up in arms. And as students of Asian cultures will confirm, Koreans can get, shall we say, a bit hot and bothered about causes close to their hearts.
Koreatimes reports that despite pleas from management for peaceful resolutions, their union has demanded that Hyundai stop expanding overseas and guarantee job security at home – or else. Read More >
Hyundai is leaking this rendering of their i-Flow concept ahead of next month’s Geneva Motor Show. In the cycle of car shows, this looks like one not to miss. Periodically, Hyundai shows something new that is spot-on. Additional leakage available for downloading on the i-Pad.
For years, TTAC has argued that General Motors suffers from a profound lack of accountability. Specific instances include the $2b “Fiatsco,” most of Roger Smith’s tenure, and cars like the Pontiac Aztek and Cadillac Cimmaron. Incidents like these helped GM along its decades-long plunge into bankruptcy, unchecked by the lax corporate governance of what came to be called its Board of Bystanders. Hyundai’s CEO may have received similarly lax treatment from South Korea’s criminal justice system, but at least the shareholders are standing up for their investment. Read More >
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