*

Hyundai, GM to develop compact SUV/car/pickup, mid-sized

pickup

for Latin America

*

Companies to develop electric vans in North America

*

Hyundai Motor ( HYMLF ) shares up 0.6% against the wider market's

0.5%

gain

(Adds analyst comments in paragraphs 6-7, share prices in

paragraph 11)

By Hyunjoo Jin, Heejin Kim and Nora Eckert

Aug 6 (Reuters) - General Motors ( GM ) and Hyundai

Motor ( HYMLF ) on Wednesday outlined plans to develop five

vehicles together as they seek to lower costs amid growing

competition from nimble Chinese rivals, although some analysts

questioned whether the plan would work.

Four of the vehicles - a compact SUV/car/pickup, and a

mid-size pickup - are targeted for launch in Central and South

America in 2028 and support both internal combustion and hybrid

powertrains.

GM and Hyundai did not say where the models would be

produced, but said they expected to be rolling out at least

800,000 vehicles a year at full production.

The partnership will help GM and Hyundai battle growing

competition from Chinese EV manufacturers in Latin America.

But some questioned whether it would create meaningful

synergies.

"Even if they sell those new models in South America,

it's hard to beat Chinese competitors which already are leading

in the electric-vehicle market with low prices," said An

Hyung-jin, chief investment officer at Seoul-based hedge fund

Billionfold Asset Management.

"Hyundai might be able to learn from GM about how to

build pickup trucks, but it would take some time to generate

earnings," he added.

The two global automakers will also co-develop and

produce an electric commercial van in the United States as early

as 2028.

"The partnership itself is a win-win strategy, since GM

can learn the hybrid technology from Hyundai while Hyundai can

use the relationship with GM as leverage for trade negotiations

with the United States," said Teddi Kim, head of auto research

firm Mirae-Mobility Research & Services.

The United States and South Korea last week reached a

trade agreement for a 15% tariff on U.S. imports from South

Korea, including vehicles.

Shares in Hyundai Motor ( HYMLF ) rose 0.7%, against the wider

market's 0.5% gain. The deal is among several announced between

a South Korean company and a U.S. firm in recent weeks,

following Samsung Electronics' ( SSNLF ) chip deal with Tesla

and Apple ( AAPL ), and LG Energy Solution's

battery deal with Tesla.

Reuters in March reported that Hyundai and GM were

nearing a deal to share two commercial electric vans and pickup

trucks.

This is the first major partnership for vehicle development

for Hyundai Motor ( HYMLF ).

GM has been unwinding several projects with Japan's Honda

over the past decade. In 2023, the two companies scrapped a $5

billion plan to jointly develop affordable electric vehicles.

Chinese carmakers have released several high-tech, low-cost

models, putting pressure on legacy rivals such as GM to slash

expenses and streamline manufacturing processes. To compete with

these rivals, many have explored partnerships as a way to share

development costs, especially for battery-powered models.

Cutting costs is even more pressing as tariffs have added

billions of dollars in expenses for automakers around the globe.