South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. said Wednesday they are aiming to increase their combined sales in China by 10 percent to 1.47 million units this year.

The sales target represents 20 percent of the carmakers' total global sales of 7.41 million units planned for this year, they said.

The Chinese car market is expected to grow 9.6 percent to 13.94 million units this year from last year, but its outlook is not all upbeat due to the prolonged global economic slowdown and strengthened government regulations on car purchases, they said.

Hyundai and Kia will improve their sales networks and customer care in China to achieve their sales goal, the companies said.

The two companies sold a total of 1,336,561 cars in 2012 in China. (Yonhap News)