Strikes dent Hyundai Motor Q3 profit

Hyundai Motor's operating profit fell 18 per cent from the second quarter to 2.05 trillion won on revenue of 19.65 trillion won. File Photo

Hyundai Motor Co. suffered a fall in third quarter profit versus the previous quarter after strikes dented vehicle production.

South Korea’s largest automaker said on Thursday, net profit fell 15 per cent from the April-June quarter to 2.16 trillion won ($1.96 billion). It was Hyundai’s first sequential drop in quarterly profit in a year.

The result, which matched forecasts, was still a 13 per cent rise over a year earlier.

Its operating profit fell 18 per cent from the second quarter to 2.05 trillion won on revenue of 19.65 trillion won.

The maker of Avante cars blamed reduced output and lower demand in the South Korean market for the quarter to quarter fall.

Despite reduced sales at home, Hyundai said its overall car sales between January and September rose 8 per cent over a year earlier to 3.18 million vehicles, thanks to higher sales in U.S. and Europe.

Operating profit during the nine months rose 15 per cent over a year earlier to 6.84 trillion won and its net profit expanded 17 per cent to 7.16 trillion won.