Hyundai Motor and Kia have increased vehicle exports from their Chinese facilities by five times in the last two years, as the South Korean car manufacturers move unused production capability in the world’s biggest automotive market into export-oriented manufacturing centers.
As per Hyundai Motor Group, the exports from its Chinese factories amounted to 118,000 units during the first half of 2025, positioning China as the group’s third-largest international export hub following Turkey and India. This number marks an increase from 64,000 units in 2024 and only 23,000 in 2023, indicating a significant recovery in production from plants that had previously been considered a burden on the group’s global presence.
Hyundai’s portion of the total increased from 10,000 vehicles in the previous year to 35,000 during the first half of 2025. The Elantra sedan was the leading export, with approximately 19,000 units sent mainly to Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia. An additional 10,000 units of the Sonata taxi model were exported to South Korea—representing the company’s initial domestic sales of vehicles manufactured in China.
The critical moment occurred in the second half of last year with Elantra exports,” said a Hyundai representative. “Now, the Middle East and ASEAN are important markets.
Kia increased its exports from Chinese plants, sending 83,000 units in the first half—marking a significant rise from 23,000 units in 2023. The top-selling export model was the Sonet, a small SUV, with 20,000 units sold in Latin America and the Middle East.
In the past, Hyundai and Kia have focused on emerging markets like Indonesia and Brazil to boost export activities. However, a representative from Hyundai admitted that local consumer demand in these regions has not grown as quickly as expected. Meanwhile, rising trade conflicts—especially U.S. tariffs that have limited exports from Hyundai’s plant in Mexico—have made managing supply chains more challenging.
In comparison, China provides relatively low labor expenses and a highly developed manufacturing infrastructure, which makes it a more appealing export hub. This change has enhanced the strategic importance of the companies’ remaining Chinese operations, which have gone through years of reduction and underutilization.
Hyundai Motor Group previously managed eight manufacturing facilities in China—five affiliated with Hyundai and three with Kia—but after a series of sales and closures, only two plants for each brand are now active. The group’s overall production capacity has decreased from 2.7 million to approximately 1.5 million units. Production in 2024 reached about 400,000 units, resulting in a capacity utilization rate of only 30 percent.
The shift towards exports is already enhancing financial results. Beijing Hyundai, Hyundai’s Chinese partnership, reduced its first-quarter operational loss to 42.3 billion won, down from 146 billion won in the same period last year. Kia’s joint venture Yueda Kia achieved profitability in 2024 for the first time in eight years, and reported 52.2 billion won in operational profit during the first quarter of 2025.
Thanks to exports supporting its operations, Hyundai Motor Group is also intensifying its efforts in China’s electric vehicle market, where its market share has dropped below 1% from a high of over 10%. The company intends to introduce its first electric vehicle in China later this year, with five environmentally friendly models—including hybrid options—planned by 2026.
Executives now claim that even small increases in market share within China might be more economical than establishing new factories in slower-growing third-world markets. For Hyundai and Kia, regaining a single percentage point in China could provide more benefit than starting from scratch in other regions.
