Hyundai Glovis CEO tours Europe to revive growth

Hyundai Glovis CEO Lee Kyoo-bok speaks during a shareholders’ meeting in Seoul on March 26. (Hyundai Glovis)

Hyundai Glovis CEO Lee Kyoo-bok has begun a business tour across eight European countries as the logistics arm of Hyundai Motor Group looks to revive growth in its second-largest global market.

According to industry sources Wednesday, Lee departed Sunday for visits to Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia and Turkey through early next month.

Sources said the decision to focus on Europe rather than the Americas — Hyundai Glovis’ largest revenue-generating region — reflects the company’s efforts to boost growth in Europe and expand cargo volumes beyond affiliates such as Hyundai Motor Company and Kia.

The Czech Republic and Slovakia are key operational hubs for Hyundai Glovis in Europe, as Hyundai and Kia each operate vehicle manufacturing plants there.

Hyundai Glovis provides logistics services including vehicle transportation, parts procurement and completely knocked-down, or CKD, logistics, which involves shipping vehicle parts for local assembly.

While North America has driven much of the company’s recent growth, Europe has lagged behind.

Hyundai Glovis’ European logistics revenue rose just 0.61 percent on-year to 1.49 trillion won ($994 billion) last year, compared with a 7.9 percent increase in the Americas to 4.28 trillion won.

Revenue from the Asia-Pacific region climbed 3.4 percent to 1.16 trillion won, narrowing the gap with Europe to around 330 billion won.

Despite the slower growth, Europe remains a strategically important market for Hyundai Motor Group’s electric vehicle exports.

Last year, more than 82.8 percent of the group’s EV sales in Europe were shipped from Korea, supporting strong demand for Hyundai Glovis’ logistics services.

To accelerate growth in the region, the company also seeks to expand non-affiliate cargo shipments as Chinese automakers rapidly increase their presence in Europe’s eco-friendly vehicle market.

According to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, imports of Chinese-made vehicles into the EU — led by EVs and plug-in hybrids — surged 30.7 percent on-year to more than 1 million units last year.