South Korea: The Coming Force in the Global Component Supply

A number of factors look set to combine that will see South Korean tier-one and tier-two suppliers play a much larger role in the global automotive component supply business in the short-to-medium term.

Local OEM Activity Has Created Momentum for South Korean Suppliers‘There is reason to believe that the South Koreans are the coming force on the international stage.’ In the realm of car manufacturing, this statement is old hat. Hyundai and Kia have made enormous strides in the past decade towards becoming what they are today: namely serious global players across all major automotive markets with product portfolios that are growing in outright quality and gaining increased respect every year. Hyundai is now the fourth-largest global vehicle original equipment manufacturer (OEM), according to IHS Automotive's 2010 data, and it continues to expand sales volumes and grab global market share on an annual basis. This has had logical consequences for the business it awards to its suppliers.