Hyundai Motor’s sales in Russia have declined for two months in a row, fueling speculation about the automaker’s potential exit from the Russian market due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
During September, Hyundai / Genesis combined sales in the Russian market plummeted by 99.8%, selling only 10 vehicles compared to the 43,000 units sold last year.
Hyundai’s decline in September sales in Russia is notable as it coincides with reports claiming that the company might shut down its operations in the country within the next year. There are speculations that Hyundai, along with Kia, will completely close their Russian operations by the end of this year, as published in the Russian Telegram channel Mash on September 4.
There are reports indicating that dealerships are reducing their inventory and even replacing signage and display vehicles with Chinese brands. This raises the question of whether Hyundai will stop its local production in Russia, after 13 years of local production.
Hyundai entered the Russian market in the 1990s and established a local subsidiary in 2007. In 2010, the company opened its St. Petersburg plant and started local production in 2011.
Hyundai’s production capacity in Russia, which was 234,000 units, has been suspended since March 2020 due to the Russian-Ukrainian war.