Hyundai Shares Soar 15% In Seoul As It Announces Dedicated Electric Vehicle Brand

Hyundai Motor Co HYMTF announced the launch of a brand dedicated to battery electric vehicles on Sunday.

What Happened: The automaker plans to sell one million units of battery-electric vehicles by 2025, occupying 10% of the global market share, in an effort to emerge as a leader in the segment under its dedicated EV brand "Ioniq."

Three electric vehicles under the Ioniq brand will be released beginning early 2021, according to Hyundai. Launch of a midsize crossover vehicle in early 2021, a sedan in early 2022, and a large crossover vehicle in early 2024 is planned.

Nikola Wants To Cooperate: Trevor Milton, the chief executive officer of Nikola Corporation NKLA, disclosed his intention of cooperating with Hyundai in an interview with local Korean media Sunday, Reuters reported.

Milton said he proposed cooperation with the Seoul-based carmaker twice, which rebuffed his efforts both times. 

A Threat To Tesla's Rise: EV rival Tesla Inc TSLA has been seeing an impressive surge in business in South Korea, becoming a dominant player on the back of Model 3 sales.

The Elon Musk-led company sold 2,827 vehicles in the country in June, with another 4000-5000 awaiting delivery. Its Model X vehicles are also said to be picking up momentum, according to Reuters.

EV Sector Growth In South Korea: SK Securities analyst Kwon Soon-woo told Reuters that the rise in shares of Hyundai on Monday reflects “investors’ hope that the auto industry will outperform compared to other industries.”

Korean battery makers such as LG Chem Ltd LGCLF, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd SSNLF unit Samsung SDI Co, and SK Innovation Co. dominated EV battery supplies in the first half this year globally, according to SNE Research.

Price Action: Hyundai shares traded 10.54% higher at $136.86 on Monday at press time in Seoul. The company's shares closed 4.67% at $31.39 in the otc market on Friday.

Photo courtesy: Hyundai Motor Co.