Hyundai China aims to lift sales by 22% in '09

SEOUL, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Hyundai Motor Co, South Korea's top automaker, said on Sunday its Chinese unit aimed to boost sales in 2009 by 22 percent, despite a cooling economy that has been hitting the world's second-largest car market.

A Chinese unit of Kia Motors Corp, Hyundai's affiliate, also targets a 30 percent rise in sales this year on Beijing's policy support to boost sales of small cars, Hyundai Motor Group said in a statement.

"We expect consumer demand (in China) for smaller cars to rise amid an economic slowdown and after cutting sales taxes," the world's fifth-largest automaker said.

China car sales growth slowed to a single-digit rate last year for the first time in at least 10 years as the once-roaring economy succumbed to a global slowdown.

China recently unveiled a raft of policies, including cutting in half the sales tax on purchases of cars with engine sizes below 1.6 litres, to help lure customers back into showrooms.

Beijing Hyundai Motor Co, a 50-50 joint venture between Hyundai and Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings, aims to sell 360,000 vehicles this year, compared with 294,508 units in 2008.

Kia's Chinese unit plans to sell 185,000 cars in 2009, up from 142,008 last year.

In January, Beijing Hyundai's retail sales rose 35 percent to 42,790 vehicles from a year ago with Kia's sales up 15 percent over a year earlier, although countrywide car sales during the month are expected to fall 13 percent, Hyundai Motor Group said.

Worldwide automakers are suffering from a severe downturn in demand due to the global recession and tight credit, and are under pressure to put off big investments and expansion plans to weather the storm.

Both Hyundai and Kia reported sharply lower operating profit in the fourth quarter, but are being helped to some degree by a weaker won currency and their line-up of smaller, cheaper cars.