South Korean carmakers Hyundai announced this week a US$1.1 billion investment in Brazil during a meeting with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva at the Planalto Palace on Thursday, Agencia Brasil reported.
South Korea's swift handling of the COVID-19 crisis has provided a backdrop for a sharp increase in demand for premium and luxury cars, dealers and officials said, as wealthy people, insulated from many of the pandemic's worst effects, want to show off on the road.
Hyundai Motor shut down a factory in South Korea on Friday after a worker tested positive for the new coronavirus, disrupting production of popular models such as Palisade sport utility vehicle.
Brazilian automaker CAOA, which produces vehicles with Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co and China’s Chery Automobile Co, is in talks to buy a Ford Motor Co plant in the country that is slated to close by 2019, according to sources reported in the Sao Paulo media.
BMW and Hyundai Motor urged the U.S. not to impose tariffs on auto imports, joining General Motors Co. in pressing their case to the Commerce Department even as a top aide to President Donald Trump dismissed the concerns as “smoke and mirrors.”