[THE INVESTOR] Ssangyong Motor , owned by India’s auto giant Mahindra & Mahindra, bounced back into profit in the first half of the year for the first time in nine years, thanks to the popularity of its Tivoli sport utility vehicle.

The automaker posted operating profit of 27.4 billion won (US$24.40 million) in the first half of the year, reversing a nine consecutive loss-making years since 2007, the company said in a regulatory filing on July 29. Sales stood at 1.77 trillion won, while net profit came to 20.4 billion won in the cited period. 

Its second-quarter operating profit came to 19.3 billion won, a turnaround from a loss of 19.9 billion won from a year earlier.

Net profit recorded 18 billion won, compared with 22.7 billion won loss from a year earlier.

In total, Ssangyong sold 40,911 units in the second quarter to add up to 74,577 units in the first half of the year here and abroad.

The stellar performance was largely driven by strong sales of the company’s Tivoli brand models. Sales of Tivoli and Tivoli Air in the first half jumped 50.9 percent from the previous year, the company said.

“Ssangyong has achieved strong performance with the Tivoli brand models, the company’s new growth engine,” Choi Johng-shik, CEO of Ssangyong Motor said in a statement. He added the company will continue to increase sales with updated models of Korando Sports and Tivoli in the latter half.

By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)