Kia Motors Q1 profit up on SUV demand, weaker won

[SEOUL] Kia Motors Corp, South Korea's second-largest automaker, posted a solid first-quarter net profit on Wednesday on the back of a weaker Korean won and strong demand for its SUVs and motorhomes.

Net profit stood at 944.6 billion won (S$1.11 billion) during the January-March period, up 4.6 per cent from a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.

"Profits have greatly increased thanks to the won's depreciation, popularity of new models such as Sportage (SUV) ... and a greater share of RVs (motorhomes) in our product line-up," it said.

Operating profit jumped 23.8 per cent on-year to 633.6 billion won on sales of 12.65 trillion won, up 13.2 per cent from the previous year.

Kia Motors, along with the country's largest automaker Hyundai motor, forms the world's fifth-largest automaking group.

Hyundai on Tuesday posted an 11.6 per cent on-year drop in net profit for January to March.

AFP