Operating profit down 4.9% despite xEV surge of 60%…Kia unveils Q2 results

*This content was translated by AI.

On the 24th, Kia held an investor relations (IR) meeting and announced its management performance for the second quarter of 2026.

The business environment was not favorable. Global industrial demand fell by 3.8% compared to the same period last year due to instability in the Middle East and a contraction in purchasing sentiment in the Chinese market. Nevertheless, the results were not poor. Kia’s establishment of an electrified LINE-up and agile, region-specific customized strategies proved effective. The outcome was record-high sales and maximum revenue achieved simultaneously.

Global wholesale sales in the second quarter increased by 4.5% year-on-year to 851,639 units. Global local retail sales, a key retail indicator, rose by 5.8% to 830,000 units. Revenue reached a record high for any quarter at 33.37 trillion won, up 12.6% from the same period last year, driven by improvements in average selling price (ASP) centered on advanced markets.

Operating profit decreased by 4.9% year-on-year to 2.6285 trillion won, affected by aggressive incentive policies in domestic and Western European markets and an increase in sales warranty provisions due to currency appreciation. The operating profit margin was recorded at 8.0%, marking the third consecutive quarter of growth since the third quarter of last year (5.1%). On a semi-annual basis, Kia’s global market share reached a historic high of 4.0% (5.0% excluding China).

The core driver of strong performance is the growth of the electrified LINE-up. In the second quarter, xEV retail sales surged by 60% year-on-year to 296,000 units, expanding their share of total sales to 35.3%. In domestic and Western European markets, EV sales increased by 123.4% and 101.5%, respectively, driven by the new model effect of mass-market electric vehicles such as EV2, EV4, and EV5, as well as the first PBV model, PV5. In the U.S. market, HEV sales rose by 151.6%, fueled by the popularity of high-margin SUV LINE-ups including Telluride and Sportage HYBE Ride.

Kia plans to achieve its annual performance guidance in the second half of the year by expanding annual production capacity for the U.S. Telluride, launching the HMGMA Sportage HYBE Ride in Yangsan, establishing a local EV production system in Europe, and introducing customized models for emerging markets, all based on new model competitiveness and electrified demand.

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*This content was translated by AI.