South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co saw quarterly profits more than quadruple, aided by a strong performance in the fast-growing Chinese and Indian markets and an aggressive sales push in the United States.
Hyundai, with affiliate Kia Motors the world's fifth largest carmaker, reported on Thursday a 702.7 billion won ($634.4 million) operating profit in the quarter ended March, versus 153.8 billion won a year ago and a record 837.2 billion won in the December quarter, when its smaller cars appealed to recession-weary buyers.
The results beat a mean forecast of 573.6 billion won from 25 analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters IBES.
With the launch of a revamped Sonata sedan and Tucson sport utility vehicle driving its US sales to a record last month, Hyundai is expected to keep its momentum and close the gap with larger rivals, led by Japan's Toyota Motor Corp.
Hyundai shares, which trebled last year, resumed their rally and hit a record high earlier this month. The stock dropped 4.6% in the first quarter, when the benchmark KOSPI gained 0.6%.
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