Hyundai, Kia's US sales up 5 pc in July on robust hybrid demand

Seoul, Aug 3 (AHN) Hyundai Motor Group said on Monday that its US sales rose 5 per cent from a year earlier in July, driven by robust demand for hybrid and sport utility vehicles.

Hyundai Motor America sold 89,427 vehicles in the U.S. market last month, including 6,947 luxury Genesis models, up 3.7 percent from a year earlier.

The Tucson was Hyundai's bestselling model with 19,714 units, followed by the Elantra with 17,115 units and the Santa Fe with 13,373 units, reports Yonhap news agency.

Kia America posted even stronger growth, with sales rising a solid 6.7 percent on-year to 75,857 vehicles in July.

The Sportage remained Kia's top seller with 16,083 units, followed by the K4 with 12,094 units and the Telluride with 11,816 units.

Combined sales of eco-friendly vehicles by Hyundai Motor and Kia jumped 24.7 percent on-year to 50,937 units in July, accounting for 30.8 percent of their total U.S. sales.

Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor and Kia sold more than 100,000 electric vehicles (EVs) in Europe in the first half of the year as the South Korean automakers stepped up efforts to strengthen their presence in the region, the companies said.

A total of 131,032 EVs were sold in Europe during the first six months of 2026, up a sharp 41.8 percent from 92,365 recorded in the previous half, according to Hyundai and Kia.

Kia's EV3 compact sport utility vehicle (SUV) was the bestselling model with 27,121 units sold, followed by Hyundai's Inster subcompact SUV with 16,594 units and Kia's EV4 sedan with 14,502 units.

If the current sales pace continues through the end of the year, the companies expect annual EV sales in Europe to surpass 200,000 units for the first time since they entered the European EV market in 2014.

Hyundai and Kia first topped 100,000 annual EV sales in Europe in 2021, and their combined sales have risen steadily since then, reaching 183,912 units in 2025.

Their cumulative EV sales in Europe surpassed the 1 million mark through May.

—AHN

na/