Virus threatens to hit state airport, rail, highway operators

The coronavirus outbreak threatens to batter South Korea's state airport, railway and highway operators due to tumbling demand for travel, data showed Wednesday. The spread of the respiratory disease, whose first confirmed case in South Korea was reported on Jan. 20, has halted almost all flights to and from South Korea, cut the number of train passengers in half and made a big dent in vehicle traffic on highways. According to the data that Rep. An Ho-young of the ruling Democratic Party rece

March 18, 2020

Family feud at Hanjin escalates with complaint to FSS

Hanjin KAL, holding company of South Korea’s flagship carrier Korean Air, complained to the Financial Supervisory Service on Tuesday, calling for a probe into “violations” of the Capital Market Act, amid the succession battle between siblings at the conglomerate. The company said that the alliance involving Hanjin Group heiress Cho Hyun-ah, Korea Corporate Government Improvement and Bando Engineering and Construction, have falsely posted equity statements that breach the Fina

March 17, 2020

Kia Motors’ new Sorento comes back in 6 years

Kia Motors on Tuesday launched its fourth-generation midsized sport utility vehicle Sorento, with a new design, larger size and improved driving assistance functions.  The automaker said the new Sorento has kept its design identity of strong image under the concept of “refined boldness,” but gave a new look by connecting the front radiator grille and LED head lamp to offer wide, stronger design.  The new model has a vertical-type LED rear combination lamp and horizontal-

March 17, 2020

Carmakers set to post poor Q1 earnings on virus fallout

South Korean carmakers are likely to post poor earnings results for the first quarter due to the escalating fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, analysts said Tuesday. The country's five carmakers -- Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp., GM Korea Co., Renault Samsung Motors Corp. and SsangYong Motor Co. -- have already suffered several weeks of output disruptions after suppliers in China halted production amid the spread of COVID-19. The coronavirus pandemic prompted many countries to impose

March 17, 2020

Hyundai Motor to exempt W2.2b of franchise fees

Hyundai Motor Group said Monday that it has decided to exempt franchise deposit of some 2,000 partner companies in charge of customer service across the country, which amounts to 2.2 billion won ($1.8 million). The automaker said 1,374 Blue Hands centers, a Hyundai Motor and Genesis’ official service provider, and 800 Auto Q centers, Kia Motors’ partner service and maintenance company, will have 50 percent of their franchise fees exempted for three months from March to May.  F

March 16, 2020

Airlines to apply no fuel surcharges on int'l routes in April

South Korean airlines will apply no fuel surcharges on international routes in April to reflect declining oil prices, industry officials said Monday. The surcharges for one-way tickets on international routes will drop to zero next month from 19,200 won ($15) in March, an industry official said. If the average jet fuel price on the Singapore spot market rises over $1.50 per gallon, South Korean airlines are allowed to impose fuel surcharges starting one month later. Jet fuel prices averaged

March 16, 2020

Hyundai signs $60m bus supply deal with Turkmenistan

Hyundai Motor said Sunday it has signed a $60 million bus supply deal with Turkmenistan. It has signed a contract with Turkmenistan’s Ministry of Transport to supply 400 New Super Aero City buses, the South Korean automaker said. It is Hyundai’s second-biggest single overseas deal, after a $66 million order for 500 units in 2016. The New Super Aero City bus features upgraded functions compared to previous models, including rear-view camera and rear cross-traffic alert function

March 15, 2020

Air carriers face double whammy on stormy coronavirus turbulence

South Korean air carriers that have been hit hard by many flight cancellations over coronavirus face a double whammy with rising parking airport fees, according to industry sources Saturday. Airports charge companies for using their facilities as parking spaces. At Incheon International Airport, the parking fee is free for three hours upon arrival, with different amounts depending on the aircraft size, for every 30 minutes. According to flagship carrier Korean Air, it has been charged almost

March 14, 2020

Socar CEO steps down after Tada comes to an end

Socar CEO Lee Jae-woong said Friday that he was stepping down from the top position to take responsibility for the suspension of van-hailing service Tada. Socar is the parent company of Tada operator VCNC. His announcement comes a day after VCNC said it would “indefinitely terminate” the service April 10.  Lee “failed to secure Tada drivers’ employment, failed to keep the investors’ trust and (his) colleagues’ dream for innovation,” he wrote on F

March 13, 2020

Air carriers fly more cargo planes than passenger planes after COVID-19 outbreak

As the aviation industry has been hit hard from the coronavirus outbreak, South Korean air carriers were flying more air cargo planes than flights carrying passengers, industry sources said Friday.  More countries have been announcing entry restrictions of South Koreans over virus concerns. The number has reached 123 as of Friday morning.  This has led to South Korea’s largest full-service air carrier Korean Air to operate only 18 flights per day, compared to 131 flights opera

March 13, 2020

[Photo News] Disinfection at BMW showroom

Officials disinfect BMW Group Korea’s showroom in Seoul on Thursday. The German automaker’s Korean unit said it has been emphasizing contactless customer service and strengthening disinfection at its showrooms to prevent the spread of COVID-19.  BMW Group Korea has donated 800 million won ($664,000) to the Community Chest of Korea to help fight the coronavirus. By Kim Da-sol (ddd@heraldcorp.com)

March 12, 2020

Tada to end van-hailing service in April

After the National Assembly passed a controversial bill last week that dealt a severe blow to ride-hailing service Tada, service operator VCNC has decided to “indefinitely terminate” the service on April 10, according to the company on Thursday.  VCNC said that it has requested 30 percent of its 20 employees resign, following the company’s plan to downsize the workforce due to the suspension of the service.  On Friday last week, Korean lawmakers voted to pass the r

March 12, 2020

Airlines halt more flights on increased entry restrictions

  South Korean airlines are halting more flights as countries around the world increasingly imposed entry restrictions in their fight against the rapidly spreading coronavirus outbreak. Asiana Airlines Inc. said Thursday it will suspend all of its flights to Thailand beginning Saturday through the end of this month as travel demand dried up amid virus fears. It is the first time for the country's second-biggest airline to suspend the route to the Southeast Asian country since it began s

March 12, 2020

Genesis G90 rated safest sedan in US crash tests

The Genesis G90, a luxury flagship sedan from Hyundai Motor, has been picked as the safest sedan by the US institute that evaluates vehicle safety, the automaker said Thursday.  According to the US Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the G90 was designated the Top Safety Pick+, the highest possible honor, becoming the third and last Genesis sedan to earn the designation. In February, the Genesis G70 and G80 were also named the Top Safety Pick+.  Established in 1959, the US inst

March 12, 2020

Coronavirus disrupts air carriers’ lease plans

With South Korean air carriers slashing the number of routes they operate over the COVID-19 spread, their plan to lease new aircrafts to increase competitiveness has hit turbulence, according to industry sources Wednesday.  Asiana Airlines’ budget carrier Air Busan had signed up to lease two Airbus 321 Neo LR aircrafts and is scheduled to receive one this month. The model can fly up to 7,400 kilometers, covering midrange routes such as to Singapore, Jakarta and Bali.  Accordin

March 11, 2020

Asiana takeover on track despite virus woes

HDC Hyundai Development Co., a midsized construction company, said Wednesday its takeover of Asiana Airlines Inc. is going as planned despite the spreading coronavirus outbreak. In December, the HDC-Mirae Asset Daewoo consortium signed a deal to acquire a 30.77 percent Asiana stake from Kumho Industrial Co., a construction unit of Kumho Asiana Group, as well as new shares to be issued and the airline's six affiliates, for 2.5 trillion won ($2.2 billion). "There have been growing concern

March 11, 2020

Virus credit negative for Korean transportation firms: Moody's

Moody's Investors Service said Wednesday the spread of the coronavirus in South Korea is credit negative for its rated transportation companies amid declining traffic volumes. The extent of the virus' adverse impact on the transportation industry will depend on the duration of disruptions and evolving public sentiment, Moody's said in a statement. "Given the spread of the coronavirus, people in Korea will be less likely to commute and go out for social and business gatherings, thereby

March 11, 2020

Korean Air offers voluntary leave program amid virus fallout

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's national flag carrier, has offered a voluntary leave program to its employees, sources here said Tuesday, as the company suffers a sharp drop in travel demand amid growing angst over the novel coronavirus. Korean Air's flight attendants who have worked for the company for at least two years can take up to three months of voluntary leave starting this month, according to sources. This is the second time that the air carrier has offered such a program to its

March 10, 2020

Passenger traffic at Korea’s gateway airport drops 80%

The number of passengers using Incheon International Airport in the first week of March dropped by 80 percent on-year, the lowest since 2003, according to the airport operator Tuesday. Incheon International Airport Corp. said that from March 1-8 the number of passengers who transited South Korea’s gateway airport came at 298,307, less than one-fifth of 1,536,594 last year.  During the first week of March, an average number of passengers using Incheon airport was around 37,000. 

March 10, 2020

Renault Samsung launches XM3, 8,542 units presold

Renault Samsung Motors said it started delivering its new premium sport utility vehicle unit XM3 on Monday, with 8,542 preorders -- which opened on Feb. 21. The company is of the view that its TCe 260, a high-performance1.3-liter gasoline turbo engine co-developed by Renault Group and Daimler Automotive Group, has captivated customers, taking up 84 percent of the preorders so far. The carmaker has introduced two versions for the new SUV line -- TCe 260, and a 1.6-liter gasoline engine, GTe.

March 9, 2020