News: Kia Motors posts 22.6% rise in overseas sales for 2005

News 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Michael Choo (  mjc@kia.co.kr),
International Communications Manager, Kia Motors Corporation, Tel: +82-2-
3464-6574, Fax: +82-2-3464-6845

Kia Motors posts 22.6% rise in overseas sales for 2005 

- 811,676 Kia vehicles sold overseas from January through December

- 62,476 vehicles sold overseas in December

- Sales in Europe, general market, and North America post 45.7%, 28.6% and
2.5% year-on-year growth, respectively, in 2005

(SEOUL) January 3, 2006 -- Kia Motors Corporation announced today that its
overseas retail sales of passenger cars and light trucks in 2005 recorded
811,676 units, representing a 22.6% year-on-year increase. From January
through December of last year, Kia exported 840,056 vehicles, which is a 10.
5% rise over the same period of last year.

Sales in December 2005 totaled 62,476 units with Europe leading the way as
Kia¡¯s largest market (27,739 vehicles sold). Exports, meanwhile, accounted
for a total of 84,864 vehicles in December with performance very strong in
the RV segment. 

For the year, 319,611 Kia vehicles were sold in Europe (45.7% year-on-year
increase), 303,880 vehicles were sold in North America (2.5% year-on-year
increase), and 188,185 cars were sold in the general market (28.6% year-on-
year increase).

Throughout 2005, 417,920 passenger cars were sold in overseas markets, with
the A-segment Picanto leading the pack (117,939 units sold). Meanwhile, 329,
990 recreational vehicles were sold overseas, with the award-winning
Sorento SUV accounting for 117,827 of the total.

According to Yong-Hwan Kim, Senior Executive Vice President and COO of Kia
Motors Corporation, ¡°The growing demand for Kia products in overseas
markets is a testament to the undivided attention we have placed on
boosting product quality, reflecting European styling trends in the designs
of our vehicles, and carrying out our global brand management initiative.¡±

¡°Building on our tremendous recent momentum, 2006 promises to be an even
more exciting year for Kia Motors. We fully expect that our global sales
will continue to outpace the industry average thanks to the continued roll-
out of our new generation of Kia vehicles as well as stepped-up investments
and branding activities taking place in strategic regions of the world,¡±
he added.

Editor¡¯s notes: 

1) Figures do not include KD (knock down) exports that are assembled at
overseas plants.
2) ¡°General market¡± includes the regions of Central & South America, Asia
& Pacific, and Middle East & Africa.

 

Kia Motors Corporation (
<http://autoway.kia.co.kr/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.kiamotors.com
/> www.kiamotors.com) - one the fastest growing automakers in the world --
was founded in 1944 and is Korea¡¯s oldest manufacturer of motor vehicles.
As part of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Kia aims to become one of the
world¡¯s premier automotive brands. Kia¡¯s 16 manufacturing and assembly
operations in 12 countries produce more than 1.1 million vehicles a year
that are sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers
covering 155 countries. Kia today has over 32,000 employees and annual
revenues of $14 billion. It is the major sponsor of the Australian Tennis
Open and an official worldwide sponsor of the Davis Cup. Kia Motors
Corporation¡¯s brand slogan -- ¡°The Power to Surprise¡± -- represents the
company¡¯s global commitment to surpassing customer expectations through
continuous automotive innovation.

# # #

<>