
In-house steel mills are not a standard feature of the modern auto industry, but one big carmaker is breaking the mould with its own blast furnaces: South Korea’s fast-growing Hyundai Motor Group.
The family-run group comprises units Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and Hyundai Steel. Chung Mong-koo, the group’s chairman, holds a 13 per cent stake in Hyundai Steel and Kia holds 21 per cent.
The conglomerate’s motive for boosting steel production for Hyundai and Kia – which combined are the world’s fifth largest maker of cars by sales – is the same as Ford’s was a century ago, as it looks to forge special alloys to slash the weight of its cars.