HYUNDAI MOTOR EUROPE Q1 SALES UP 18%

Rüsselsheim, Germany, 5. 4. 2004 (PROTEXT/ots) -European first quarter sales up 18 pct y-o-y to 81,926 unitsMarch "Best Sales Month Ever" with 34,613 units Annual salestarget re-adjusted from 330,000 to 350,000 units

Hyundai Motor Europe (HME) just finished the first quarter of2004 with a historic high of 81,926 units, which represents ayear-over-year growth rate of 18 percent. As the major marketsshow signs of recovery and an improving economic climate,Hyundai Motor Europe have adjusted their forecast for 2004 from330,000 to 350,000 units.

"We are pleased to announce that we achieved a record monthwith European sales of 34,613 units in March, adding to a strongfirst quarter. Especially our continuous improvements in qualityand brand image will have a lasting impact on our sales inEurope," said Kwang Heum Um, President of Hyundai Motor Europe.

Pushing the growth in terms of volume during the firstquarter were the Getz with 26,100 units (up 38.6 pct y-o-y), theMatrix with 10,300 units (up 28 pct y-o-y) and the Santa Fe with11,500 units (up 11.8 pct y-o-y). By showing a clear competitiveadvantage in areas such as packaging, level of equipment andfunctionality, Hyundai expanded their sales of SUV (Santa Fe andTerracan) and MPV (Matrix and Trajet) models by 17.3 percent to15,400 units and 18.6 percent to 13,300 units respectively.

"Although ambitious in our forecast, we are confident that wewill manage to show our best result ever in 2004. With the startof the UEFA Euro 2004 'season' in just a few weeks time, weexpect to further strengthen our position by aggressivelyinvesting in sales-generating marketing activities," saidPresident Um and added: "It becomes quite visibly that weprepare ourselves to gather further momentum for advancing inour goal of becoming one of the world's top five automakers by2010."

Established in 1967, Hyundai Motor Co. has grown into theHyundai Automotive Group which includes Kia Motors Corp. andover two dozen auto-related subsidiaries and affiliates.Employing nearly 50,000 people worldwide, Hyundai Motor posted17.77 billion Euro in sales in 2003. Hyundai motor vehicles aresold in 190 countries through 4,504 dealerships and showrooms.Further information about Hyundai Motor Co. and its products isavailable on the Internet at http://www.hyundai-motor.com. For further information contact: Ralf Kaiser EuropeanCommunications Hyundai Motor Europe GmbH Tel: +49 6142 7 89 9361 rckaiser@hyundai-europe.com

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