This file photo provided by Hyundai Motor shows its independent Genesis brand's face-lifted GV80 SUV model. (Yonhap)
SEOUL – Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Corp. said Wednesday their combined sales in the United States dropped 10 percent in September from a year earlier on decreased exports and lower local demand due to a hurricane.
Last month, Hyundai and Kia sold a combined 127,941 vehicles in the world's most important automobile market, down from 142,869 units the previous year, according to the companies' sales data.
Hyundai's sales declined 8.7 percent to 69,028 units in September from 75,605 a year ago, while Kia's plunged 12 percent to 58,913 from 67,264 during the same period.
Hyundai's sales figures include its independent Genesis brand's sales results.
"September sales were affected by the impact of Hurricane Helene, which hit the southeastern part of the U.S. late last month and decreased U.S.-bound exports due to fewer working days (at the carmakers' domestic plants) to celebrate the Chuseok holiday," Hyundai said in a statement.
Chuseok, the Korean version of Thanksgiving, fell on the third week of September this year.
From January to September, their overall sales fell 0.3 percent on-year to 1,246,602 autos from 1,250,482 during the same period of last year.
Hyundai's US sales rose 2.6 percent to 662,432 units in the first nine months from 645,808 in the year-ago period. But Kia's declined 3.4 percent to 584,170 from 604,674.
The two Korean carmakers together form the world's third-largest carmaker by sales after Toyota Motor Corp. and Volkswagen Group. (Yonhap)
