Electric vehicle sales by Kia, South Korea’s No. 2 automaker, in the United States from January to July have surged two-fold on-year, driven by strong demand for the company’s EV9 SUV model, industry data revealed on Monday.
According to data from the Korea Automobile & Mobility Association, Kia’s EV sales in the U.S. during the first seven months of the year totaled 33,957 units, a significant increase from 16,941 units in the same period last year, reports Yonhap News Agency.
Kia’s performance stands out against the overall U.S. EV market, which saw a modest growth of only 0.9 percent on-year, from 638,716 units to 644,752 units.
Industry experts attribute Kia’s robust sales growth to the popularity of the EV9 SUV model. From January to July, 11,486 units of the EV9 were sold in the U.S., accounting for 34 percent of Kia’s total EV sales in the country.
This success has bolstered Hyundai Motor Group’s presence in the U.S. EV market, where the group’s market share reached 11.1 percent during the first seven months of the year, the highest in the group’s history.
Furthermore, the proportion of EVs within Kia’s entire eco-friendly vehicle lineup, which includes EVs, hybrids, and plug-in hybrid models, has increased significantly. From January to July, EVs made up 44.5 percent of Kia’s total eco-friendly vehicle sales, with 33,957 out of 76,393 units sold being EVs. This is nearly double the 23.7 percent recorded in the same period last year.