The market share of South Korean automakers in the sport utility vehicles market in the United States posted a seven-year high in the first quarter.

According to the industry on Sunday, Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors sold 155-thousand SUVs combined in the January-March period in the United States, taking up eight percent of the market.

The combined share, which topped ten percent in 2011, remained at around seven percent since then but recovered to the eight percent level this year.

SUVs accounted for a record 53-point-eight percent of the two automakers' total sales in the first quarter.