Seoul, May 6 Kia, South Korea's second-biggest carmaker, sold a record number of electric vehicles (EVs) in Europe in the first quarter, data showed on Tuesday.
Kia sold 27,761 EVs during the January-March period in the European market, a 17 percent increase from the previous record set in the third quarter of 2023, according to the data provided by the company, reports Yonhap news agency.
The proportion of EVs in the company's overall vehicle sales in Europe also surpassed the 20 percent mark for the first time.
The boost in EV sales was spearheaded by the Kia EV3, a compact electric sport utility vehicle (SUV) model, which sold 17,878 units in the first quarter, accounting for 64 percent of the company's total EV sales in the cited period.
Sales of EVs are rapidly increasing in Europe, with 573,500 cars sold in the first quarter alone, up 28 percent from the same period last year, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA).
The South Korean automaker plans to beef up its EV lineup with the launch of the new EV4, EV5 and PV5 models in Europe this year.
Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor, South Korea's biggest carmaker, said last week its sales rose 2 per cent in April from a year earlier, driven by strong demand for its sport utility vehicle (SUV) models.
Hyundai sold 353,338 vehicles last month, up from 346,473 units a year earlier, the company said. Domestic sales climbed 5.9 percent from 63,733 to 67,510 units, while overseas sales increased 1.1 percent from 282,740 to 285,828 over the cited period.
While focusing on expanding sales of high-end models, Hyundai also plans to maintain steady sales of gasoline hybrid vehicles amid a slowdown in the EV market.
From January to April, cumulative sales edged up 0.1 percent to 1,354,458 vehicles from 1,353,179 in the same period last year.
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