Kia Corp takes $570 million hit from US tariffs in second quarter

SEOUL: South Korea’s Kia Corp said on Friday that it suffered a hit of 786 billion won ($570 million) from U.S. tariffs in the April to June period.

Kia, the world’s No.3 automaker together with affiliate Hyundai Motor, said its operating profit slumped 24% to 2.76 trillion won in the second quarter, from a year earlier.

Kia increased U.S. sales by 5% as consumers brought forward car purchases due to concerns that US tariffs would lead to higher vehicle prices. It also had solid sales of its new Carnival hybrid sport utility vehicles in the second quarter.

Kia shares were down 1.7%.