The carmaker will commence retail sales at 21 dealerships in 10 major cities with an additional 26 dealers expected to be in operation by January 2016 and a total of 65 dealers serving customers by 2017.

Three import models will be initially available: the Forte ('Cerato' or 'K3' in some markets) sedan, Sportage compact CUV, and Sorento midsize CUV. These will be joined by the new Optima midsize sedan in November 2015.

The company also confirmed that all Kia vehicles sold in Mexico will be covered by its seven-year/150,000 manufacturer's warranty.

Kia Motors executive vice president & chief operating officer, Tae-Hyun (Thomas Oh), said, "As one of the world's last remaining markets in which the Kia brand does not have a sales presence, our aggressive entry into Mexico is a clear sign of the importance this market holds for our future, and we are excited to provide local consumers with stylish vehicles that feature world-class levels of quality, safety and technology, all backed by a warranty that is unmatched in the market."

The launch comes as Kia announces that construction of its first manufacturing plant in Mexico, located in Pesqueria, Nuevo León (near Monterrey), is approximately 50% complete and the $1bn (€890,115) facility is on schedule to commence mass production in mid-2016. The Forte sedan will be the first model to be produced at the Kia Motors Mexico plant with other yet-to-be-confirmed compact Kia models to be added to the line-up. In addition to supplying the local Mexican markets, vehicles from the plant will be exported to numerous countries in the region including the United States and other Latin America markets.

Mr Oh concluded: "We look forward to contributing to the continued growth of the Mexican economy and local auto industry by creating large-scale employment opportunities while giving Mexican consumers exciting new choices in their motoring lives. I am confident that Kia will get off to a fast start in Mexico and that Kia owners will enjoy market-leading levels of customer satisfaction."