Hyundai Motor said Wednesday its first-quarter operating profit came in at 824.9 billion won ($718 million), up 21.1 percent from last year, boosted by sales of its latest sport utility vehicle model Palisade, which hit the market in December. 

According to the automaker, first-quarter sales increased 6.9 percent to 23.9 trillion won, while net profit jumped 30.4 percent to 953.8 billion won. 

Although Hyundai Motor’s global sales decreased 2.7 percent to 1.02 million units of cars in the first quarter, the company said the improved performance was possible due to the higher sales proportion of SUVs and high-priced models. 

“Despite the slow growth of the global economy and continued business difficulties, our new models, such as the Genesis G90 and Palisade sold well, which led to increased profitability,” said a Hyundai Motor official.

As of the end of March, a total of 18,049 units of the Palisade have been sold, surpassing half of the annual sales goal of 25,000 units.

Hyundai Motor said its research and development costs inched up 10.8 percent to 3.8 trillion won due to sales promotions and research for new models. 

Meanwhile, the company said it will continue to aggressively launch new models to maintain profitability, with a focus on SUV lineups to meet growing demand. 

By Kim Da-sol (ddd@heraldcorp.com)