SsangYong Motor Q1 loss narrows on SUVs

SEOUL, April 29 (Yonhap) -- SsangYong Motor Co., the South Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., said Monday its net losses narrowed in the first quarter from a year earlier on robust sales of sport utility vehicles.

Net losses narrowed to 26 billion won (US$22 million) in the January-March quarter from 34 billion won in the year-ago period, the company said in a statement.

"Strong demand for the Rexton Sports Khan and the Korando SUV models helped the company report a nearly 10 percent on-year sales growth in the first quarter," the statement said.

SsangYong Motor sold a total of 33,627 vehicles in the first quarter, up 9.7 percent from 30,664 units a year ago.

To bolster sales, SsangYong said it is moving to launch Korando models in overseas markets such as Latin America, the Middle East and the Oceania region later this year to boost sales.

Operating losses also narrowed to 28 billion won from 31 billion won during the same period. Sales rose 15 percent to 933 billion won from 809 billion won, it said.

Mahindra & Mahindra owns a 72.9 percent stake in SsangYong Motor.

kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
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