Values of South Korea’s largest conglomerates Hyundai and Kia have come under pressure as New York sued the manufacturers, indicating that many of their vehicles are too easy to steal.
- Among other things, regulators cited the lack of immobilizers, a standard security feature. They accused manufacturers of choosing ‘margins and profits’ over safety and deviating from industry standards;
- Recently, some of the conglomerates’ models have been the subject of ‘viral’ videos on TikTok, where users were able to observe easy ways to steal them – ultimately leading to an increase of the proceder in cities.
Both Hyundai and Kia have stated that they have taken steps to combat the theft and are willing to cooperate with U.S. safety and transportation regulators. Hyundai (HYUD.DE) shares are trying to rebound and are losing less than 2%. Kia Corp. was one of the worst performing large companies among Korea’s KOSPI index, losing more than 4%.
Hyundai shares (HYUD.DE). Source: xStation5
