Hyundai Motor’s stock has climbed more than 40% this year, yet the company reported a weaker second‑quarter net profit as vehicle sales slipped amid cooling global demand. The earnings come at a time when Hyundai’s unionized auto workers in South Korea are staging partial walkouts for a second straight week, demanding higher wages and job protections as the automaker plans to deploy humanoid robots on assembly lines within two years.

The union has doubled strike hours to four per shift this week, and it opposes management’s plan to introduce advanced artificial intelligence and robotics. Despite the labor unrest, Hyundai’s net profit for the April‑June period fell 11% from a year earlier to 2.888 trillion won—equivalent to $1.96 billion—but still beat the Fact Set‑compiled consensus estimate of 2.661 trillion won.

The decline reflects a broader slowdown in global car demand, and it marks the latest setback for South Korea’s largest carmaker. While the company’s shares continue to rally, the combination of weaker sales, rising labor costs, and a shift toward automated production poses significant challenges for Hyundai’s future profitability.