Kia workers to stage partial strike for higher wages

Unionized workers at Kia Motors Corp. will stage a partial strike to demand higher wages, the carmaker's union said Monday. The walkout planned for Tuesday comes as Kia's management and its 28,240-strong union failed to narrow a gap over wages and other benefits in this year's collective bargaining negotiations.  "After weeks of talks with the management, Kia workers have decided to carry out the strike in line with planned strikes by (its umbrella labor group) the Korean Metal Workers' Union,"

Aug. 21, 2017

Hyundai Motor seeks to expand Genesis luxury brand

Amid declining sales and popularity of Hyundai Motor vehicles worldwide, the country’s leading automotive company is recruiting experienced workers to strengthen its independent premium brand Genesis, the company said Monday.Hyundai Motor will look for experts to work on marketing and strategy planning of Genesis, alongside software experts for autonomous driving and connected cars, and experts in eco-friendly vehicles batteries until Sept. 3.“The recruitment shows Hyundai’s efforts to boost sal

Aug. 21, 2017

Demand for ultra-compact EVs rises in Korea

Renault Samsung Motor's Twizy ultra-compact EV (Renault Samsung Motor)Amid the growing popularity of electric vehicles, ultra-compact EVs are emerging as a new form of transportation due to mobility on congested roads as well as their affordability, industry watchers said Sunday.“Ultra-compact EVs have been mentioned as the next generation of mobility for drivers living in clustered cities for quite a while now. The latest trend that began in Europe has recently landed in Korea,” said Kwon Soon-

Aug. 20, 2017

Volvo Korea to invest W100b on network expansion, customer service

Lee Yun-mo, president of Volvo Car Korea speaks at a press briefing held at Volvo Car Korea‘s new office in Gangnam, southern Seoul, on Wednesday evening. (Volvo Car Korea)Volvo Car Korea, local importer and distributor of the Swedish automaker, said it will invest 100 billion won ($88 million) to expand its dealership network and strengthen customer service in South Korea, a market it sees with greater potential.“We will invest 100 billion won this year to expand our networks, showroom and serv

Aug. 17, 2017

Hyundai Motor suffers W300b won output losses on strikes

Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's top automaker, said Thursday that it has suffered an estimated 300 billion won ($264 million) in lost production due to three rounds of partial strikes at its main plant in the country.Unionized workers at the carmaker staged four-hour strikes last week, demanding higher wages and bonuses.They plan to walk out again on Friday and Monday as the company's sweetened offerings fell short of their demands. (Yonhap)Hyundai Motor's approximately 50,000-member union dema

Aug. 17, 2017

Kumho Tire to diversify Ecsta PS71 tire size

Kumho Tire’s high-performance tire Ecsta PS71. (Kumho Tire)Kumho Tire will expand the size of its high-performance tire Ecsta PS71 to offer the product to more motorists starting next year, the company said Thursday. Over 10 tire sizes of the Ecsta PS71, ranging from 16 inch to 20 inch-rim diameter sizes, will be added to the product lineup in 2018 from the current 24 sizes.Made for premium sports driving, the Ecsta PS71 was released last March as an upgraded version of the Ecsta LE Sport, the c

Aug. 17, 2017

Hyundai Motor to develop 31 eco-friendly models by 2020

Hyundai Motor‘s next generation fuel cell electric vehicle slated for release next year. (Hyundai Motor Group)Hyundai Motor on Thursday unveiled its next-generation fuel cell electric vehicle set for release early next year, as part of plans to expand its eco-friendly vehicles to 31 models by 2020.“The next-generation FCEV is symbolic of Hyundai Motor’s heritage and leadership. The new model unveiled today confirms Hyundai’s global leadership in FCEVs, while heralding the beginning of a hydrogen

Aug. 17, 2017

GM India CEO to head Korea unit

Kaher Kazem, chief executive officer of General Motor’s India was named new head of the US automaker’s South Korean operation, the company said Thursday. 　“We are pleased to have Kaher taking over GM’s key operations in Korea,” said GM Executive Vice President and President of GM International Stefan Jacoby. “As a car guy, Kaher has had a long and distinguished career in manufacturing, business operations and leading key markets in the automotive industry. He has the experience and global perspe

Aug. 17, 2017

Six models of Peugeot, Citroen vehicles to be recalled

Peugeot and Citroen vehicles will be recalled for faulty parts, the transport ministry said Thursday.Six models imported by Hanbul Motors, including the Peugeot 508, Peugeot 308 and Citroen DS5, are subject to the recall, affecting 1,226 cars, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. These cars have power cables connected to a starter motor that could lose their coating when scraped by other engine components, raising the risks of fire from short circuiting, ministry offi

Aug. 17, 2017

Labor costs at carmakers among highest last year

The ratio of labor costs to overall revenue generated by three major automakers here was relatively higher than companies in other industries, data showed Wednesday.According to CEOScore, a local corporate tracker, labor costs at Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and SsangYong came to 13 percent of their sales last year, double the average of 5.9 percent at 334 companies studied.  Hyundai`s second plant in Ulsan, South Gyeongsang Province. YonhapThe auto industry has been waiting for a court ruling on a

Aug. 16, 2017

Hyundai Mobis develops Korea’s first bi-directional on-board charger

(Hyundai Mobis)Hyundai Mobis, South Korea’s biggest auto parts supplier, developed Korea’s first bi-directional on-board charger, or OBC, that can be installed in electric vehicles to heighten energy efficiency, the company said Wednesday. The bi-directional charging device is essential for the vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology, which connects EVs to the electrical grids.“The highlight of the bi-directional OBC is that it sends surplus electricity back to the grid to maximize energy efficiency, a

Aug. 16, 2017

Hyundai sees boost in eco-friendly cars, hurdles lie in China

Kia Motors' Niro plug-in hybrid SUV. (Hyundai Motor Group)Amid declining sales of Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors in Korea and abroad, demand for eco-friendly cars made by the country’s top two carmakers is increasing, data from the company showed.Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors sold a combined 141,681 eco-friendly cars between January and July this year, which is 10 percent more than the 128,975 units sold for the whole of 2016. Eco-friendly cars offered by the two companies consist of 14 models -- s

Aug. 15, 2017

Posco to hire 6,000 regular workers by 2020

(Posco)Posco, South Korea’s leading steelmaker, will hire a total of 6,000 full-time employees from this year to 2020 in an effort to offer job opportunities and secure talent, the company said Tuesday. The company will hire 1,500 workers annually for the next four years.The large-scale employment plan comes as the steelmaker strives to gain a lead in the “fourth industrial revolution” by researching and developing new sources of growth such as lithium, the company said.To secure talent, Posco w

Aug. 15, 2017

Hyundai, Kia sets up communication system to push forward autonomous driving

South Korea's top two carmakers said Tuesday that they have set up an advanced vehicle-road communication system as part of their broader plan to advance autonomous driving technology.Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. said they have incorporated the so-called vehicle to everything system on a 14-kilometer stretch of road with seven intersections in Hwaseong, south of Seoul.The companies said they will carry out detailed research to verify the validity, effectiveness and soundness of the sys

Aug. 15, 2017

Mercedes-Benz Eurostar, new service center launched in Gangnam

Wise Auto Holdings, a bodybuilder of Mercedes-Benz’s commercial vans here, rolled out the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van, dubbed Eurostar, at the opening of a service center for the vans Thursday. The opening of the center located in Gangnam, southern Seoul, was part of a marketing strategy to target Korea’s growing van market, the company said Sunday.“We spent three years to prepare for the opening of the service center, not to mention all the investment put into research and development and real e

Aug. 13, 2017

With new engine, facelifted S-Class to debut in Korea in September

German luxury automaker Mercedes-Benz aims to continue capturing Korean customers with its facelifted S-Class lineup upgraded with new engines. Unveiled to the world in April at the Shanghai Auto Show, the new sixth generation S-Class will go on sale here in September, according to the company’s local retailer in Korea last week.The new S-Class models come with three engine options that are more powerful than their predecessors, the company said. The German carmaker has changed the model numbers

Aug. 13, 2017

Korean carmakers' profitability falling behind foreign rivals

South Korean carmakers posted lackluster profitability over the first half of 2017, industry data showed Sunday, falling far behind major overseas rivals.Top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co.'s first-half operating margin was 5.4 percent, down 1.2 percentage points from a year earlier, industry data showed. Its sister company Kia Motors Inc. also posted a margin of 3 percent, down 2.2 percentage points on-year.In terms of the operating margin, Hyundai Motor moved down four notches over the cited period

Aug. 13, 2017

Hankook Tire partially responsible for worker’s death: court

(Yonhap)The Seoul Central District Court ruled this week that Hankook Tire was partially responsible for the death of a factory worker surnamed Ahn who died of lung cancer caused by toxic chemicals in 2015.This marks the first ruling that holds the local tiremaker responsible for the death of its factory worker.The company is South Korea’s largest tiremaker and No. 7 by sales globally. The verdict ordered Hankook Tire to compensate the plaintiffs -- the worker’s wife and three children -- a tota

Aug. 11, 2017

Partial strike adds to Hyundai Motor’s headache

A decision by unionized workers at Hyundai Motor to stage partial strikes is likely to further burden the South Korean automaker, which is suffering from sluggish overseas sales partly due to a diplomatic dispute between Seoul and Beijing.Calling for wage hikes and job security, union members of Hyundai Motor said they would stage a strike Thursday and Monday for two hours at 11:30 a.m., and at 8:20 p.m. by another group of workers on the afternoon shift. The automaker’s unionized workers have s

Aug. 10, 2017

Hyundai Motor stands to lose No. 3 market-cap status

South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. stands to lose its No. 3 status in terms of market value to surging steelmaker POSCO due to stalling stock prices stemming from lackluster earnings, data showed Thursday.Hyundai Motor's market capitalization stood at 32.2 trillion won ($28.3 billion) as of Wednesday, compared with 29.6 trillion won for the country's leading steelmaker, according to the data by the Korea Exchange.The gap in the market cap of the two companies, which reached as high as

Aug. 10, 2017