Nearly 16,000 enjoy 'flights to nowhere' amid pandemic

Nearly 16,000 people have used "flights to nowhere" offered by South Korean airlines since the sightseeing flights were introduced late last year, the customs office said Monday. The Korea Customs Service (KCS) said 15,983 passengers used a total of 152 international flights designed for the purpose of the air journey, not the destination, between December 2020 and May 2021. Passengers using the flights have bought duty-free products worth 22.8 billion won ($20 million) over the past

June 14, 2021

Eastar may pick preferred bidder next week

Budget carrier Eastar Jet Co. may pick a preferred bidder next week after reviewing plans from several investors to take over the financially troubled company, industry sources said Sunday. Easter Jet, currently under a court-led rehabilitation scheme, has received letters of intent from several companies, including a consortium led by Kanglim, a local equipment maker under underwear company Ssang Bang Wool, and other private equity funds, according to industry sources. Several companies have

June 13, 2021

Audi rolls out RS Q8, high-performance SUV

Audi Korea is launching the new RS Q8, a high-performance sports utility vehicle that combines both dynamic driving and practicality, the automaker said Friday. According to Audi Korea, it will start receiving orders for the new RS Q8 here on Tuesday. The RS Q8 is the first large SUV to be launched under the RS category, the auto brand’s high-performance lineup which stands for Racing Sport. The SUV has twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 gasoline engine and an eight-speed automatic transm

June 11, 2021

Electric vehicles make debut at Seoul Smart Mobility Expo

Automakers and mobility service providers gathered at Seoul Smart Mobility Expo on Thursday to show off their latest electric vehicles and mobility technologies. In the three-day expo that kicked off at the Oil Tank Culture Park in Seoul, the country’s leading automaker Hyundai Motor Group’s Genesis brand unveiled the first electric powertrain variant of its luxury sedan Genesis G80 for the first time in the country. The model made its overseas debut at the 2021 Shanghai Internati

June 10, 2021

Preorders for Kia's EV6 in US fully booked in a day

Kia Corp., South Korea's second-biggest carmaker, said Thursday presale orders for its first all-electric model, EV6, have been fully reserved in one day in the United States. Kia sold all of the 1,500 units of the EV6 First Edition in an online preorder event in the world's most important automobile market on Tuesday (US time), the company said in a statement. The EV6 First Edition is equipped with a 77.4 kilowatt-hour (KWh) battery, an augmented reality head-up display, remote parking assist

June 10, 2021

Korea eyes travel bubbles with Singapore, Guam, Saipan

South Korea said on Wednesday it will accelerate travel bubble talks with the likes of Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand to allow quarantine-free package tours for those who are fully vaccinated from as early as July. With only group tours allowed at the beginning, one or two flights will fly a week, carrying up to some 200 passengers once a travel bubble is formed, with plans to extend the scale of the travel scheme later, the Transport Ministry said. The move comes as the government is set to

June 9, 2021

Hyundai Motor chief wins 2021 Autocar Awards top accolade

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun won the 2021 Autocar Awards' top accolade, the Issigonis Trophy, for his contribution to the global automotive industry, the company said Wednesday. Named after legendary car designer Sir Alec Issigonis, the trophy is awarded by Autocar to an individual who has played a significant role in helping to shape the future of the auto industry. "Chung has overseen the Hyundai Motor Group, whose brands include Hyundai, Kia and Genesis, in transforming in

June 9, 2021

Jeju Air resumes flights to Saipan amid vaccination drive

Jeju Air Co., South Korea's biggest budget carrier by sales, said Tuesday it has resumed flights to Saipan in a preemptive measure to absorb post-coronavirus travel demand. Jeju Air started to provide one flight a week on the Incheon-Saipan route on the day following permission from the transport ministry, a company spokesman said over the phone. "We expect most of the initial passengers to be businessmen, Koreans residing overseas and their family members. But pent-up demand for travel (

June 8, 2021

Signs of hope for air travel as vaccination speeds up in Korea

Hopes for air travel recovery are starting to coalesce around the vaccine rollout in South Korea, as booking sites and airlines prepare for a surge in travel demand. E-commerce platform WeMakePrice said Monday that bookings for international flights jumped 442 percent between May 27 and June 2 – the week when the government’s leftover vaccine appointments began. “With main travel destinations lifting quarantine requirements for vaccinated travelers and South Korean airlines r

June 7, 2021

[Behind the Wheel] Audi’s most powerful vehicles whizz on Inje Speedium

INJE, Gangwon Province -- A line of high-performance vehicles could be seen whizzing around the racing circuit of Inje Speedium in Gangwon Province on Wednesday, the growls from their engines echoing throughout the venue. It was part of the Audi Driving Experience, an annual event Audi Korea organizes to offer car enthusiasts an opportunity to try out its highest-end vehicles and its latest automotive technologies. This year, Audi Korea presented 10 vehicles, including the electric vehicle

June 7, 2021

Tesla Y top-selling foreign car in May

Tesla’s Model Y dethroned longtime favorite the Mercedes-Benz E-Class to become the top-selling imported car in South Korea in May, industry data showed Thursday. According to market tracker CarIsYou, 3,461 Y vehicles were newly registered with local authorities that month, compared with 2,387 E-Class vehicles. Sales of the Y, the all-electric compact sport utility vehicle and the latest release from the American electric car brand, began in earnest here last month. From January thro

June 3, 2021

Porsche Korea launches Taycan Turbo in S. Korea

Porsche Korea has launched Taycan Turbo, a high-performance model of the brand’s first electric vehicle, the company said Thursday. Taycan Turbo is the third Taycan variant to be launched here in Korea, and stands in between Taycan Turbo S and Taycan 4S, performance-wise. Like the Taycan Turbo S -- the higher-performing variant -- it is equipped with a Performance Battery Plus, with a gross capacity of 93.4 kilowatt hours as standard. Using launch control, the vehicle can exert up to 68

June 3, 2021

Kumho Tire supplies Ecsta HS51 for Renault Samsung’s Arkana

Kumho Tire is exclusively supplying its best-selling tire Ecsta HS51 for Renault Samsung Motors’ compact sports utility vehicle Arkana -- known as the XM3 in South Korea -- distributed in Europe, the company said Thursday. According to the South Korean tire manufacturer, Ecsta HS51 is their best-selling tire in Europe, using rubber and high grip resin for enhanced braking function. The model is noted for a variety of technologies and devices, such as Virtual Product Development simulat

June 3, 2021

Man Truck and Bus Korea designated as regional hub for Austral-Asia region

Man Truck and Bus Korea has been designated as the German truck maker’s regional headquarters, managing 12 countries in the Austral and Asia region, an executive board member from the German headquarters said on Thursday. Participating in a press conference held in Seoul, Goran Nyberg, an executive board member for sales and marketing at Man Truck and Bus, said the Korean branch will be playing a bigger role in the group’s business operations. He also spoke of complaints raised by

June 3, 2021

Tesla's Model Y becomes best-selling imported model in May

US electric vehicle maker Tesla's newly released Model Y was the top-selling foreign car model in South Korea last month, beating German luxury brand Mercedes-Benz's E-Class, industry data showed Thursday. A total of 3,461 Tesla's vehicles were registered in May, sharply up from 76 in April, thanks to the release of new EV models, according to the data by CarIsYou Data Research Center. Tesla's Model Y accounted for most of the Korean sales, selling 3,328 units in May, becoming the best-selling

June 3, 2021

Hyundai, Kia's US sales on roll in May

Hyundai Motor Co. and affiliate Kia Corp., South Korea's two biggest carmakers, said Thursday their combined US sales again broke their monthly record for the third consecutive month in May thanks to the popularity of their SUV models.  Hyundai and Kia sold a combined 170,315 vehicles in the United States last month, up 64.6 percent from a year ago, according to the companies' sales data. Both Hyundai and Kia, which together form the world's fifth-biggest carmaker by sales, reported the

June 3, 2021

Auto sales rise 41% on robust overseas demand

South Korean carmakers' sales rose 41 percent last month from a year earlier on strong overseas demand amid a quicker-than-expected recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and a lower base effect, industry data showed Tuesday. The country's five carmakers -- Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Corp., GM Korea Co., Renault Samsung Motors Corp. and SsangYong Motor Co. -- sold a combined 608,430 vehicles in May, up from 432,621 units a year ago, according to data from the companies. Their domestic sales fell 13

June 1, 2021

SsangYong's May sales rise 6% on strong overseas performance

SsangYong Motor Co. said Tuesday its sales rose 6 percent last month from a year earlier on increased exports of its SUVs. SsangYong Motor sold 8,750 vehicles in May, up from 8,254 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Exports more than quintupled to 3,854 units last month from 711 a year ago, but domestic sales fell 35 percent to 4,956 units from 7,575 over the cited period, the statement said. From January to May, its sales fell 19 percent to 31,660 units from 39,206 units

June 1, 2021

Race to acquire Eastar Jet heats up as more companies enter bidding process

More companies including poultry producer Harim and underwear company Ssang Bang Wool have entered the race to acquire financially troubled budget airline Easter Jet. Around ten companies and private equity funds have submitted a Letter of Intent to acquire the low cost carrier, according to reports citing sources close to the industry. The list includes Kanglim, a crane manufacturer and a subsidiary of Ssang Bang Wool Group, as well as Harim Group‘s shipping company Pan Ocean. The dea

June 1, 2021

Renault Samsung's May sales drop 13% on weak domestic demand

Renault Samsung Motors Corp. said Tuesday its sales fell 13.3 percent last month from a year earlier due to weak domestic demand. The South Korean unit of Renault S.A. sold 10,348 vehicles in May, down from 11,929 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales tumbled 56.2 percent on-year to 4,635 units last month in the face of toughening competition with other brands. Exports rose more than fourfold to 5,713 units over the cited period as the automaker shipped 4,247

June 1, 2021