SEOUL (Reuters) – Hyundai Motor Group appointed Euisun Chung as group chairman on Wednesday, formally cementing his succession to the leadership of the world’s fifth-largest automaker conglomerate from his octogenarian father.
In the first generational handover at the South Korean automobile giant in 20 years, Hyundai Motor Group said Chung, 49, had been promoted to chairman from executive vice chairman, replacing his father, Mong-Koo Chung, who was made honorary chairman.
Euisun Chung has played an increasingly visible leadership role since September 2018 when he was promoted to executive vice chairman.
His father, who took the wheels of the group in 2000, gave up his board seat in Hyundai Motor earlier this year after stepping back from frontline operations.
Euisun Chung has led Hyundai Motor Group’s push in electric vehicles (EVs), mobility and hydrogen cars. In July, he said Hyundai and sister company Kia Motors <000270.KS> aimed to sell 1 million electric vehicles (EVs) in 2025, jointly targeting a more than 10% share of the global market for EVs.
(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin, Additional reporting by Joyce Lee)
