Hyundai Mobis Co., South Korea's largest auto parts company, said Friday its second-quarter net profit plunged 43 percent from a year earlier on lower demand in China.

Net profit for the three months that ended on June 30 fell to 481.24 billion won ($431 million) from 848.83 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. 

In the second quarter, the parts manufacturer's main buyers -- Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. -- suffered sharp declines due to political tensions between Seoul and Beijing over the deployment of an advanced US anti-missile system on South Korean soil. China has objected to the move and has taken retaliatory measures in the form of economic restrictions.

"Decreased parts shipped to the carmakers cut deeply into the bottom line," a company spokesman said.

Operating profit fell 37 percent to 492.39 billion won in the June quarter from 784.74 billion won a year ago. Sales were down 16 percent to 8.28 trillion won from 9.85 trillion won during the same period, the filing said.

Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and Hyundai Mobis are all major affiliates of Hyundai Motor Group, the country's largest carmaker.

In the January-June period, Hyundai Mobis's net profit declined 24 percent to 1.24 trillion won from 1.64 trillion won in the year-ago period, it said. (Yonhap)