Watching its market share drop even as sales rose, Hyundai’s U.S. sales leader John Krafcik said the firm will look to increase capacity and perhaps incorporate trucks and crossover vehicles into its lineup. Hyundai, which had a 22 percent sales jump for the Sonata model, already has announced an addition of a third shift at its Hope Hull plant. Hyundai U.S. market share ranked at 4.9 percent for the first half of 2012, compared to 5.1 percent last year.
Alabama’s automakers have increased production by 19 percent in the first half of 2012, the Birmingham News reported in late July. And all of the state’s big three are hiring workers to meet growing demand, according to the leader of the automakers’ trade association.
Auto supplier Midwest Acoust-A-Fiber Inc. has announced plans for a plant in Lanett, Chambers County. The firm makes heat and noise-shielding products.
By Nedra Bloom
