What a strike in Korea could mean for US Hyundai and Kia buyers
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/plants-manufacturing/" rel="tag">Plants/Manufacturing</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/hyundai/" rel="tag">Hyundai</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/" rel="tag">Kia</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/uaw-unions/" rel="tag">UAW/Unions</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/south-korea/" rel="tag">South Korea</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/read-this/" rel="tag">Read This</a></p><a href="http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2013/08/hyundai-kias-troubled-home-turf-labor-relations-continue-the-latest-chapter-has-korean-labor-unions-voting-to-strike-1.html?utm_source=feedbur ner&utm_medium=feed&utm_c ampaign=Feed%3A+cars%2Fki ckingtires+%28Kickin"><im g alt="In this Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2013 photo, workers of Hyundai Motor cast their votes to decide on unions to go on strike at the firm's plant in Ulsan, south of Seoul, South Korea. Labor unions at Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Motors said workers voted to strike after talks with management for increased pay and benefits collapsed. Hyundai union spokesman Kwon Oh-il said Wednesday that management refused all demands by the union during three months of annual talks. (AP Photo/Lee Sang-hyun, Yonhap) KOREA OUT" data-caption="In this Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2013 photo, workers of Hyundai Motor cast their votes to decide on unions to go on strike at the firm's plant in Ulsan, south of Seoul, South Korea. Labor unions at Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Motors said workers voted to strike after talks with management for increased pay and benefits collapsed. Hyundai union spokesman Kwon Oh-il said Wednesday that management refused all demands by the union during three months of annual talks. (AP Photo/Lee Sang-hyun, Yonhap) KOREA OUT" data-mep="2226" src="http://o.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/GLOB/crop/2450x1644+0+0/resize/628x417!/format/jpg/quality/85/http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/adam/e5612f485afc84500518bc39e c205281/8edb14c5ed6a4cbba6e6e35b1 8afa9b6.jpeg" /></a><br />
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A prolonged factory strike at Hyundai-Kia factories in South Korea could mean that US dealership inventory of certain vehicles, such as the South Korea-built <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/hyundai/accent/">Hyundai Accent</a> and <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/soul/">Kia Soul</a>, could dry up in the coming months, depending on the length of the strike, reports <em>Cars.com</em>'s blog, <a href="http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2013/08/hyundai-kias-troubled-home-turf-labor-relations-continue-the-latest-chapter-has-korean-labor-unions-voting-to-strike-1.html?utm_source=feedbur ner&utm_medium=feed&utm_c ampaign=Feed%3A+cars%2Fki ckingtires+%28Kickin"><em >Kicking Tires</em></a>. The two brands together rank sixth in US sales and fifth in global sales.<br />
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<em>Kicking Tires</em> gives fascinating insight into how a production stoppage in South Korea might affect vehicle sales in the US, considering Hyundai-Kia has two factories in the US that build the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/sorento">Kia Sorento</a> and Optima/Optima Hybrid, and the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/hyundai/elantra/">Hyundai Elantra</a> sedan/coupe/GT, Sonata/Sonata Hybrid and Santa Fe/Santa Fe Sport. The only one of these vehicles that's built solely in the US is the Kia Sorento, with the rest of them sharing production with South Korea.<br />
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Be sure to read the piece, especially if you're in the market for a <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/hyundai/">Hyundai</a> or <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/">Kia</a>, or just interested in global economics.<p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/08/19/strike-in-korea-could-mean-us-shortage-hyundai-kia/">What a strike in Korea could mean for US Hyundai and Kia buyers</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Mon, 19 Aug 2013 16:31:00 EST. Please see our <a href="/rss-term-of-use/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/08/19/strike-in-korea-could-mean-us-shortage-hyundai-kia/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/20696216/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/08/19/strike-in-korea-could-mean-us-shortage-hyundai-kia/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

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