Kia, which commenced its Indian operations in August 2019, has shipped over 250,000 locally manufactured vehicles. As per data available with industry body SIAM, till end-April 2024, Kia India has dispatched a total of 252,830 units to overseas markets.
Till date, Kia India has launched five vehicles in the domestic market – the Seltos midsize SUV, Sonet compact SUV, Carnival MPV (now discontinued), Carens MPV and the all-electric EV6 SUV. Of these, four barring the EV6 (which is an import) have been exported.
Kia India’s best fiscal year export performance was in FY2023 when it shipped 85,756 units, up 69% year on year (FY2022: 50,864 units) and accounted for 13% of India Passenger Vehicle Inc’s total exports of 662,891 units. In FY2023, Kia India was the third highest PV exporter after Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai Motor India. Kia India’s FY2024’s exports at 52,105 units though were down 39% YoY (see data table below).
Kia India’s best export performance was in FY2023 when it shipped 85,756 units, up 69% and accounted for 13% of India PV exports of 662,891 units.
From market entry in August 2019 through to end-April 2024, Kia India has manufactured a total of 1.21 million units (12,12,111 units) produced from its 350,000-units-per-annum factory in Anantapur. Exports at 252,830 units comprise 21% of the total production with domestic market sales accounting for the remaining 79 percent.
The Seltos midsize SUV, Kia India’s first product and also its best-seller both in the domestic market and exports, tops the export chart with 147,615 units and a 58% share of total exports to date. The Sonet compact SUV, with 87,779 units, is second and has a 35% share of Kia India’s overseas shipments. The Carens MPV, with 17,295 units exported in 27 months, is next and has a 7% share of exports. The company had also exported 141 units of the Carnival MPV.
In Kia’s global scheme of things, India, which is currently the fastest growing economy in the world, is a strategically important market and a vital sales, production and R&D hub. A little over four years after Kia India began production, the company’s Anantapur plant is now one of the most critical export hubs in the global Kia network. Demand for utility vehicles and MPVs remains strong and Kia’s made-in-India products are making their presence felt in a number of countries.
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