South Korea's Hyundai, Kia expect slowest sales growth in 10 years

1 of 6. The logo of Hyundai Motor is seen on a car displayed at a Hyundai dealership in Seoul in this July 1, 2011 file photo. South Korea's biggest automakers Hyundai Motor Co and affiliate Kia Motors Corp are targeting a 4 percent increase in global sales in 2013 to a combined 7.41 million vehicles, their slowest growth since 2003.

Credit: Reuters/Truth Leem/Files

By Hyunjoo Jin

SEOUL | Tue Jan 1, 2013 8:04pm EST

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea's biggest automakers Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS) and affiliate Kia Motors Corp (000270.KS) are targeting a 4 percent increase in global sales this year to a combined 7.41 million vehicles, their slowest growth since 2003.

The duo, which together ranks fifth in global car sales, is bracing for more modest growth after years of expansion at breakneck speed. Group chairman Chung Mong-koo has slowed capacity building to focus on improving branding and profitability in the hopes of better competing with rivals that include Japan's Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T).

Hyundai Motor and Kia will pursue brand innovation by raising the quality of our vehicles, Chung, the 74-year-old chairman of Hyundai Motor and Kia's parent group, said in his annual speech to employees on Wednesday.

In line with that strategy, Kia promoted chief designer and executive vice president Peter Schreyer - known for his design contributions to the iconic Audi TT - to president late last week.

Earlier in 2012, Hyundai Motor poached ex-BMW designer Christopher Chapman to head its U.S. design center.

"Chairman Chung said our maximum capacity is 8 million vehicles. No more than that. Instead, he said we need to move upmarket and raise margins," a former top Hyundai executive told Reuters.

Hyundai Motor plans to unveil a luxury-concept vehicle at the upcoming Detroit motor show, a spokesman said, without elaborating.

The auto maker targets sales of 4.66 million vehicles this year, while Kia has set a goal of 2.75 million, according to regulatory filings.

RISING WON

But investors are concerned that growth momentum will wane with Hyundai Motor and Kia's go-slow strategy and the firming South Korean won.

Hyundai and Kia's industry-leading margins are being threatened by the strengthening won, which reduces repatriated earnings and pricing power. The South Korean currency rose 7.6 percent against the dollar last year, its biggest percentage gain since 2009.

By contrast, the yen is softening, which could tip the competitive balance in favor of their Japanese rivals such as Honda Motor Co Ltd (7267.T).

Reflecting those concerns, shares in Hyundai Motor rose 2.6 percent in 2012 while Kia shares slumped 15.3 percent, underperforming the wider market's .KS11 9.4 percent gain.

Hyundai and Kia were the worst performing stocks among the world's top five automakers last year, according to Thomson Reuters data.

A dearth of new models for Hyundai Motor and Kia this year may also erode sales growth, analysts say.

The next generation of Genesis, Hyundai Motor's premium sedan, may be unveiled only in late 2013.

Kia Motors plans to launch a new Soul compact car this year, a spokesman said, without elaborating on possible rollout plans for other models.

PREVIOUS TARGET

Hyundai Motor and Kia sold a combined 7.12 million vehicles in 2012, up 8 percent from the previous year and better than their original target of 7 million.

The duo drove up sales in China when their Japanese competitors were hit by a backlash in a dispute over islands in the East China Sea last year.

In the United States and Canada, Hyundai Motor and Kia's sales have not been greatly affected so far by their November 2 admission that they had overstated the fuel economy of more than 1 million cars.

Hyundai Motor, which started new plants in China and Brazil in 2012, is in a better position to increase sales this year than Kia, which did not add any capacity at all last year.

The companies plan to release their global sales results for December later on Wednesday. Figures for the United States are due on Thursday.

(Additional reporting by Daum Kim in SEOUL; Editing by Ryan Woo and John Mair)

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REFILE-Sony stands by PS3 sales target for 2011/12

TOKYO Dec 15 (Reuters) - Sony Corp said on Thursday that it was standing by its target to sell 15 million PlayStation 3 game machines in the 2011/12 financial year.

Welsh-born Andrew House, who on Sept. 1 took up his post as head of Sony Computer Entertainment, said that sales of the device had not suffered due to the debt crisis in Europe.

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Holiday retail sales look brighter than before

By Martinne Geller

Thu Dec 15, 2011 12:26am EST

n">(Reuters) - An influential retail trade group raised its forecast for U.S. holiday retail sales on Thursday, citing strong results in November and expectations that consumers still have more shopping to do.

The National Retail Federation said it now expects holiday sales to rise 3.8 percent to a record $469.1 billion. That is up from the group's October forecast, which called for growth of 2.8 percent.

The new forecast is still lower than the 5.2 percent growth seen last year, but is above the 10-year average increase of 2.6 percent.

"Consumer spending this holiday season has surpassed expectations, though many shoppers continue to stick to their budgets and buy only what they need," said NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz in a statement.

The holiday shopping season, which kicks off unofficially after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, is critical for retailers from Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) to Best Buy Co Inc (BBY.N) to Gap Inc (GPS.N).

The reason for the updated forecast is that NRF, a retail industry trade group, found that industry sales for November rose 4.5 percent year-over-year, and that the average American has completed far less of their holiday shopping than in previous years -- an indication that many shoppers bought for themselves in November and have lots of shopping left to do.

While retailers are "cautiously optimistic" that the season will turn out better than initially expected, NRF President Matthew Shay said "a number factors, including the debt crisis in Europe and continued political wrangling in Washington, could impact consumer spending this holiday season and into 2012."

The NRF's figures compare sales at retail stores with the year-earlier period and exclude restaurants, gasoline, automobiles and online sales.

That is why its results look different than those announced by the U.S. Commerce Department, which said U.S. retail sales grew a weaker than expected 0.2 percent in November.

(Reporting By Martinne Geller in New York, editing by Matthew Lewis)

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Holiday retail sales look brighter than before

By Martinne Geller

Thu Dec 15, 2011 12:26am EST

n">(Reuters) - An influential retail trade group raised its forecast for U.S. holiday retail sales on Thursday, citing strong results in November and expectations that consumers still have more shopping to do.

The National Retail Federation said it now expects holiday sales to rise 3.8 percent to a record $469.1 billion. That is up from the group's October forecast, which called for growth of 2.8 percent.

The new forecast is still lower than the 5.2 percent growth seen last year, but is above the 10-year average increase of 2.6 percent.

"Consumer spending this holiday season has surpassed expectations, though many shoppers continue to stick to their budgets and buy only what they need," said NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz in a statement.

The holiday shopping season, which kicks off unofficially after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, is critical for retailers from Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) to Best Buy Co Inc (BBY.N) to Gap Inc (GPS.N).

The reason for the updated forecast is that NRF, a retail industry trade group, found that industry sales for November rose 4.5 percent year-over-year, and that the average American has completed far less of their holiday shopping than in previous years -- an indication that many shoppers bought for themselves in November and have lots of shopping left to do.

While retailers are "cautiously optimistic" that the season will turn out better than initially expected, NRF President Matthew Shay said "a number factors, including the debt crisis in Europe and continued political wrangling in Washington, could impact consumer spending this holiday season and into 2012."

The NRF's figures compare sales at retail stores with the year-earlier period and exclude restaurants, gasoline, automobiles and online sales.

That is why its results look different than those announced by the U.S. Commerce Department, which said U.S. retail sales grew a weaker than expected 0.2 percent in November.

(Reporting By Martinne Geller in New York, editing by Matthew Lewis)

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FINRA fines 8 firms for private placement sales

n">(Reuters) - The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority on Monday sanctioned eight brokerages and ten individuals, and ordered a total of $3.2 million in restitution for selling private placements that ultimately failed.

The Wall Street self-regulatory watchdog found that the brokerages did not have "adequate supervisory systems in place to identify and understand" the risks of the private placement offerings, according to a statement.

Brokerages named include NEXT Financial Group Inc in Houston, Texas; Investors Capital Corp of Lynnfield, Massachusetts; and Securities America in La Vista, Nevada.

A Securities America spokeswoman said in a statement that the firm is "pleased to put the matter behind us".

Representatives from NEXT Financial Group and Investors Capital Corp did not immediately return calls for comment.

FINRA sanctioned the firms and numerous officers they employed for sales of private placements offered by Provident Royalties LLC, Medical Capital Holdings and DBSI Inc. The securities ultimately failed, causing significant investor losses. None of the companies or individuals involved admitted or denied the charges.

Private placements, often called "Reg D offerings", are usually exempt from Securities and Exchange Commission registration because they are not intended for sale to the general public. Investors must typically meet certain net-worth and income requirements to be eligible to purchase private placements.

Securities America was a unit of Ameriprise Financial Inc until November 7, when it was acquired by Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc.

(Reporting by Suzanne Barlyn in New York, editing by Chelsea Emery)

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Worried US shoppers greet 'Black Friday' sales

By Dhanya Skariachan and Liana B. Baker

Fri Nov 25, 2011 7:25am EST

n">(Reuters) - Bargain hunters flocked to U.S. stores late Thursday and overnight Friday, searching for deals while fretting about their own shaky economic well-being.

Some stores, looking to grab as big a piece as possible of what is expected to be a middling holiday shopping season, pushed post-Thanksgiving openings into Thursday evening or opened at midnight for the first time in years, getting a jump start on 'Black Friday', the traditional beginning to the U.S. holiday shopping season.

The strategy appeared to be working, judging from the 300 people who were lined up at a Toys R Us store on Long Island, New York before it opened at 9 p.m. on Thursday.

Shoppers were looking for bargains, but customers like James McBreaty were just what retailers wanted -- those who will also buy things beyond the "doorbuster" deals retailers offer to entice customers.

"We came for the deals but we were just discussing if we will buy things that aren't discounted," McBreaty, 32, a paralegal who was waiting with his wife Nicole, said. "Most likely the entire store isn't discounted but we're here so we'll probably buy some crap anyway."

In reality, the shopping period has been underway for some time as retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) and Toys R Us started early by offering layaway programs.

Retailers, from Amazon.com (AMZN.O) to Wal-Mart, were also offering online deals as Thanksgiving has become one of the biggest online shopping days of the year.

Retail executives and analysts are predicting a more competitive season than 2010. Unemployment still remains at 9 percent, European debt woes are weighing on the stock market and consumer confidence remains spotty.

The National Retail Federation, an industry trade group, forecast a 2.8 percent increase in sales for the November-December holiday season, down from the 5.2 percent increase in 2010.

Some shoppers even feel as though the recession has returned, even if it has not shown up in economic data.

"This year, we are going to do shopping but I don't think it is going to be as much shopping as we usually do. Because of the recession, we are not going to shop as much," Desiree Schoolfield, 49, a public service profession from Queens who was shopping at the Toys R Us in Times Square, said.

MIXED VIEWS ON EARLY START

Earlier on Thursday, a line outside a Best Buy in Union, N.J., included shoppers who had pitched a tent to stay warm until the store's midnight opening, according to Charles O'Shea, a Moody's senior retail analyst.

O'Shea said he was visiting various retailers to gauge consumer traffic. The big draws are deals, like t-shirts for $6, down from $12. Bargains like those will be a fixture for the season, he said.

"There is no question that the shopper is looking for deals," O'Shea said. "Nobody wants to feel like they're leaving money on the table, especially when they have less money now."

NRF expects 152 million people to hit stores this weekend, up 10.1 percent from last year.

Wal-Mart, Old Navy, which is part of Gap Inc (GPS.N) and KMart, owned by Sears Holdings'(SHLD.O), were among the few retailers open on Thanksgiving.

To narrow the gap in store hours with rivals, discounter Target Corp (TGT.N), electronics chain Best Buy (BBY.N) and department store chains Macy's Inc (M.N) and Kohl's Corp (KSS.N) will open at midnight - their earliest starts ever.

Those midnight openings drew online petition protests from store workers, and some shoppers also did not like the early openings.

"Tonight all the stores decided to open at midnight which is difficult when you're trying to enjoy dinner with your family," said Louis Clapper, 24, as he shopped at the Walmart in Farmingdale, New York. "Normally I leave the house at midnight, or 3-4 a.m. for a 5 a.m. opening. The stores are opening earlier and earlier."

At Macy's in Herald Square, several Occupy Wall Street activists chanted "boycott Macy's" and "stop supporting big corporations" even as 9,000 people lined up to shop at the store.

Others retailers, including J.C. Penney Co Inc (JCP.N), are opening early Friday morning as they did last year.

Wal-Mart started its Black Friday "doorbuster" deals on Thursday at 10 p.m. at its stores. Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), not to be outdone, will offer its deals online at 9 p.m.

The knock-down-drag-out fight comes as the rebound in sales cooled in October, when many top chains like Macy's and Saks reported disappointing sales.

It will be even tougher for chains that have struggled with sales declines lately, like Gap and Penney.

Last year, after a strong Black Friday weekend, shoppers sat on their hands until closer to Christmas. (Writing by Brad Dorfman in Milwaukee. Reporting by Dhanya Skariachan, Liana B. Baker and Phil Wahba in New York; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

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Weak global economy fails to dampen fine wine sales

Ultra rare magnums of Le Pin 1982 wine are displayed at Sotheby's ahead of a June 2011 auction, in London June 10, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Olivia Harris

By Leslie Gevirtz

NEW YORK | Wed Nov 23, 2011 6:01am EST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - In good times collectors buy fine wines and in bad times they buy even more, the latest wine auction figures show.

Leading wine auction houses are reporting bumper results for 2011. Christie's sales have totalled $77.7 million globally, more than last year's $70 million and there are auctions scheduled for Amsterdam, London and Hong Kong before the end of the year.

"Despite the bleak news of the weak economy globally and last week's markets, I have to tell you, I'm still encouraged. There is a lot of interest and a lot of buyers" for wines that can sell for tens of thousands of dollars a bottle, said Robin Kelley O'Connor of Christie's.

The auction house sold $1.2 million of wine in New York on Saturday, including six bottles of Moet & Chandon Grand Vintage 1911 for $66,000, which were auctioned for The Lunchbox Fund, a charity that provides meals for children.

The bottles had been found in the 18 miles (29 kms) of tunnels beneath the chateau's estate.

John Kapon of Acker, Merrall & Condit sold $2.4 million of wines on Saturday including a Salmanazar, a bottle that holds the equivalent of nine litres of wine, for $20,740.

Kapon estimates business is up 15 percent over last year.

"People work hard and drink harder," he said.

With two more auctions still scheduled for December, in New York and Hong Kong, Kapon expects a total of more than $100 million for the year.

Although Sotheby's wine sales of $82,001,258 are slightly behind last year, the auction house has one more auction in London where sales are expected to reach as much as $3.4 million.

"There are two factors: there is less wine coming to market and the prices are a little softer," Sotheby's Jamie Ritchie said.

All of the auction houses said the Asian market, which drove up Bordeaux prices, has shifted its focus to Burgundy, a much smaller region that produces less.

"It's a natural progression to move from Bordeaux to Burgundy, but it's not as if they've abandoned Bordeaux. I think we will see a healthy market with a bit more cautious pricing," Ritchie said.

Richard Harvey, of London-based Bonhams auction house described 2011 as "a fantastic year ... with sales totals well up on 2010.

"Although the market has eased off slightly in the second half of the year for top Bordeaux, particularly Chateau Lafite, this has been more than compensated by the rise in prices of top Burgundy, notably (Domaine de la) Romanee-Conti."

Bonhams sold a case of the 1990 vintage for $198,000 in September. After its final three sales in December it expects to top last year's nearly $13 million in sales.

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