Hyundai Motor‘s (OTC:HYMTF) sister company Kia has reportedly initiated a cash incentive program for its U.S. dealers in a bid to clear inventory and increase sales.
What Happened: Kia’s sales of electric vehicles (EVs) saw a significant increase in the first quarter of 2024. However, the company is now looking to further boost sales by clearing out older inventory and making room for new models. To achieve this, Kia has introduced the ‘Kia April 2024 Dealer Flat Cash Program’, which will provide dealers with a cash incentive for every 2023 EV6 sold through April 30th, CarsDirect reported.
Under this program, dealers will receive $1,000 for each 2023 EV6 sold, with the amount increasing to $1,500 for the high-performance EV6 GT. This initiative is aimed at encouraging dealers to move the older inventory off their lots.
Kia is also extending payments of $500 to dealers for every 2024 model year EV6 and EV9 sold. Other model year 2024 EVs and plug-in hybrids qualify for a $250 payment, the report added.
Why It Matters: Kia’s American subsidiary sold 179,621 vehicles in the first quarter, marking a drop from 184,136 vehicles sold a year ago. The company, however, saw a jump in EV sales with 4,007 EV9 vehicles sold in the quarter and EV6 sales jumping nearly 20% year-on-year to 4,059 units.
As per data from Kelley Blue Book, the company sold a total of 9,654 EVs in the U.S. in the last quarter including the Kia Niro EV, marking a year-on-year jump of 62.8%.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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