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Hyundai appoints U.S. chief Jose Munoz as new CEO

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Company braces for Trump's potential tariffs and EV

subsidy cuts

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Munoz credited with Hyundai's electrification and sales

growth

(Adds more details of reshuffle, analyst comment, context

throughout)

By Heekyong Yang and Hyunjoo Jin

SEOUL, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Hyundai Motor ( HYMTF )

named Jose Munoz, current U.S. chief and global chief operating

officer, as co-chief executive officer on Friday, marking a rare

appointment of a foreign national to a CEO post at a major South

Korean conglomerate.

The reshuffle at the helm of the world's third-biggest

automaker by sales when combined with affiliate Kia

comes as South Korean businesses that have invested heavily in

the United States brace for Donald Trump's second presidency.

Leadership change will "enhance global competitiveness" and

help "better prepare for uncertainties in the global business

environment," the automaker said in a statement.

Hyundai Motor ( HYMTF ) currently has three co-CEOs. Munoz will join

Euisun Chung and Lee Dong-seok as well as Chang Jae-hoon who

will also become group vice chair overseeing the automotive

division.

Sung Kim, a former U.S. diplomat who was part of a team

assisting President-elect Trump in his first term at a summit

with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, was named president

overseeing global external affairs.

Hyundai with Kia rank second in U.S. sales of electric

vehicles after Tesla. They are bracing for what could

be huge impact from Trump's pledge to impose tariffs on imports

and cut subsidies for EVs.

Trump has also floated the idea of imposing 200% tariffs

on cars imported from Mexico, where Kia operates a production

site.

Munoz, a Spanish native and U.S. citizen, joined the

automaker in 2019 and was formerly CEO of Hyundai Motor America.

He has been credited with Hyundai's increased commitment to

electrification and growth in sales across multiple categories.

"Munoz is appointed as the first non-Korean CEO of Hyundai

Motor ( HYMTF )... He is expected to enhance the company's global

management systems and further elevate its stature as a leading

global brand," the South Korean automaker said.

"As CEO, Munoz will play a critical role in helping the

company navigate potential challenges posed by a second Trump

administration," Kiwoom Securities analyst Shin Yoon-chul said.

Hyundai has hired several former South Korean diplomats in

recent years to its "Global Policy Office" in a move widely seen

as readying for policy uncertainty under a change in U.S.

administration.

It brought in Sung Kim as an adviser in January to "support

Hyundai's response to global trade and policy and external

networking".

Hyundai Motor ( HYMTF ) has invested $12.6 billion to produce EVs and

battery cells in the U.S. state of Georgia - its largest

investment outside South Korea, spurred by incentives that came

with the incumbent administration's push to shift more of the EV

supply chain to the United States and away from Asia.

However, Trump's transition team plans to end a $7,500

consumer tax credit for EV purchases as part of broader tax

reform legislation, Reuters previously reported, citing sources.

Munoz was once considered a potential candidate to take the

lead at Japan's Nissan Motor after the ouster of Carlos

Ghosn.