Hyundai Motor, South Korea’s top carmaker, targets annual sales of 70,000 units of its new ix25 subcompact sport utility vehicle in China as it seeks to capitalize on a fast-growing popularity of SUVs in the world’s largest auto market, a company executive said Thursday.

Hyundai unveiled the China-focused model at this week’s Beijing Auto Show, where the latest SUVs have drawn the biggest oohs and aahs from urban Chinese customers enjoying bigger-than-ever incomes. Hyundai plans to begin selling the ix25 in October this year in China, the executive said on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media.

“Initially, we aim to sell 70,000 ix25 vehicles a year in the Chinese market,” the official said on the sidelines of the auto show, adding that the model aims at China’s rising “balinghou” generation, or those born after the 1980s. (Yonhap)