South Korean brand Hyundai is now the third-biggest carmaker in the world, according to Bloomberg analysis, as the company surpassed General Motors, Nissan and Stellantis in annual volumes on its ride to the heights of the industry.
Bloomberg cited Bloomberg Intelligence and data from Hyundai, Toyota and Volkswagen.
The milestone is a long way from the days when Hyundai struggled to make inroads outside Asia in the 1980s. Bloomberg pointed out that the automaker’s Genesis now competes head-on with other luxury brands and with Ford for second place in U.S. electric-vehicle sales after market leader Tesla.
The news service, though, ticked off Hyundai’s struggles: the shuttering of a large factory in Russia and allegations that its suppliers hired under-age workers in Alabama, along with challenges daunting the overall industry, including higher raw material costs, a chip shortage, and, for overseas carmakers, a U.S. tax credit favoring North American-assembled EVs.
Bloomberg said North America is Hyundai’s biggest market, making up 21% of its 2021 sales.
The top two carmakers are Volkswagen and Toyota, which have traded places for 14 years. Fortune, meanwhile, didn’t even include Hyundai in its top five in a ranking it published in August, placing Stellantis in third place.
