Hyundai Motor has named chief operating officer José Muñoz as the first foreign leader of the world’s third-largest carmaker, as the South Korean company gears up for Donald Trump’s second presidency.
Friday’s announcement that Muñoz would be co-chief executive came as shares in local battery makers LG Energy Solution and Samsung SDI fell more than 10 per cent in morning trading, after Reuters reported that the Trump administration was set to end a $7,500 subsidy for buying an electric vehicle in the US. Hyundai shares also edged lower.
The carmaker also named Sung Kim, a former US diplomat, as its president “to better prepare for uncertainties in the global business environment”, the company said on Friday.