Byung Kwon Rhim has been appointed as the new president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Hyundai Motor Europe.

Rhim has strong experience of working in the region. He previously held the role of president at Hyundai Motor Russia, but prior to that held several marketing positions within Europe and also served as the head of Europe Division at Hyundai's headquarters in Korea.

He said, "It is a great honour to be joining Hyundai's European operations at such an important time for the company.

“The current economic situation is very challenging and we expect this to continue in 2013. Therefore we will focus on building our brand image and enhancing the quality of our operations through programmes that make a real difference for the customer."

Rhim replaces former president Tak Uk Im, who is moving to the company's global headquarters in Korea to become head of international operations division.