Kia Motors posts 22.4% increase in June global sales

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SEOUL July 13, 2009; Kia Motors Corporation announced today its global sales figures (export sales, domestic sales, and sales from overseas plants) for passenger cars, recreational vehicles (RVs), and commercial vehicles for June 2009, recording a total of 158,394 units sold. This marks a year-on-year increase of 22.4%.

By region, Kia posted year-on-year sales increases in Korea (46,006 units sold, a 78.6% year-on-year increase), China (22,579 units, a 63.3% year-on-year increase), and general markets (25,988 units sold, a 3.4% year-on-year increase).

Cumulatively, through the first six months of 2009, Kia's global sales increased by 4.5% year-on-year and reached 749,328 units. The Korean market experienced the highest gain selling 192,524 units to date, representing a 25.0% increase.

Chinese and general markets showed cumulative year-on-year sales increases of 22.1% (97,376 units sold) and 14.1% (136,277 units sold), respectively.

To date in 2009, Kia's best selling model in overseas markets has been the C-segment Cerato (known as 'Spectra' or 'Forte' in some markets) with 123,480 units sold. The B-segment Rio and Sportage compact SUV competed closely for second with 76,696 and 76,200 units sold, respectively. Meanwhile, the C-segment cee'd and A-segment Picanto round out the top five with 61,632 and 45,961 units sold, respectively.

In terms of vehicle category sold overseas, Kia's recreational and passenger vehicles achieved year-on-year increases in June of 22.0% (38,867 units) and 2.7% (70,740 units), respectively.

Hyoung-Keun Lee, Senior Executive Vice President and COO of the International Business Division, Kia Motors Corporation, said "We are delighted to see that sales of Kia vehicles have remained strong through the first half of this year, and we are confident that we will continue to grow in 2009. Despite a challenging industry environment, we believe we are well-positioned to continue to gain share in many of the world's major markets this year."

Editor's notes:
*Includes figures from Western and Eastern European markets
**General markets includes the regions of Central and South America, the Caribbean, Asia (excluding China), the Pacific, Middle East and Africa

Kia Motors Corporation a maker of quality vehicles for the young-at-heart -- 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. Nearly 1.5 million vehicles a year are produced in 13 manufacturing and assembly operations in eight countries which are then sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering 172 countries. Kia today has over 40,000 employees worldwide and annual revenues of over US$14.5 billion. It is the major sponsor of the Australian Open and an official automotive partner of FIFA -- the governing body of the FIFA World Cup -- as well as a EUROTOP partner of UEFA. Kia Motors Corporation's brand slogan -- "The Power to Surprise" -- represents the company's global commitment to surpassing customer expectations through continuous automotive innovation.