Seoul:<Text>

Kia Corp. on Friday reported a first-quarter net profit of 1.83 trillion won (US$1.2 billion), down 23.5 percent from a year earlier. The carmaker revealed this in a regulatory filing, noting a significant decline in its financial performance over the January-March period.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Kia's operating income for the quarter decreased by 26.7 percent year-on-year to 2.2 trillion won. Despite the drop in profit and operating income, the company's sales saw an increase of 5.3 percent, reaching 29.5 trillion won.

The reported earnings did not meet market expectations, as analysts had predicted an average net profit of 1.91 trillion won, according to a survey conducted by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency.