Korea’s cosmetics production surpasses record W10tr

South Korea’s net cosmetics production reached a record 10.73 trillion won ($9.3 billion) last year, led by strong exports to China, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said Wednesday.Korea’s cosmetics production rose on-year by 19.64 percent in 2015, lending a hand in doubling the country’s cosmetics trade surplus on-year to roughly $1.5 billion last year, the ministry said.Cosmetics shops inside the main Shinsegae Department Store in central Seoul (Yonhap)Korea’s cosmetics exports rose 43.76

June 8, 2016

Hyundai, Kia see May sales in China up 16.6%

Hyundai Motor Co. and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors Corp. said Wednesday that their combined sales in China grew double digits in May for the first time this year.The two South Korean carmakers sold a combined 150,450 units last month in China, up 16.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data provided by the companies.The strong sales brushed off concerns of a sales slump by the two carmakers in the world's largest market earlier this year.The data showed that Hyundai Motor sold 100

June 8, 2016

Volkswagen owners to demand refund of their cars

Thousands of Volkswagen owners plan to ask South Korea's environment ministry to order the local unit of the German carmaker to refund the cost of their cars, a lawyer said Wednesday.Jason Ha, who represents about 4,400 Volkswagen owners at Barun Law, said he will formally file the petition with the ministry as early as Thursday.He said the government can order carmakers to refund the cost of cars under the law.On Tuesday, the environment ministry rejected Volkswagen's plan to recall vehicles th

June 8, 2016

Amid growing uncertainty Hotel Lotte delays IPO

Hotel Lotte on Tuesday postponed a plan to list itself on the nation’s main bourse this month in the face of growing concerns over an ongoing probe into a lobbying scandal involving the firm’s former executives.Hotel Lotte, the operator of the nation’s largest duty-free business, said in its report to the Financial Services Commission that it would delay its IPO to next month. It also said it would lower the price range to between 85,000 won and 110,000 won per share, from 97,000 won to 120,000

June 7, 2016

Hyundai Motor to supply 500 buses to Turkmenistan

Hyundai Motor has signed a deal with Turkmenistan’s government to supply 500 units of its large bus, according to the automaker Tuesday. Under the deal, Hyundai would supply 500 Aero City amounting to around $66 million, the largest overseas deal of its buses. This is equivalent to the shipments of 2,600 units of premium Sonata, which costs 30 million won ($25,800) each.  Aero City bus (Hyundai Motor)The automaker has already supplied 490 and 200 buses to the nation in 2009 and 2012, respectivel

June 7, 2016

Korea again rejects Volkswagen's recall plan

South Korea's environment ministry said Tuesday it has again rejected Volkswagen's plan to recall its vehicles that fabricated emissions results, saying the local unit of the German carmaker did not admit to using a defeat device to trick vehicle testing.The Ministry of Environment disapproved the plan submitted by Audi Volkswagen Korea for not stipulating that the vehicles were equipped with what are called defeat devices, designed to manipulate emissions results.The carmaker's initial recall m

June 7, 2016

Korea orders Nissan to recall emissions-faked cars

South Korea's government on Tuesday ordered Nissan Korea Co., the local unit of the Japanese carmaker, to recall hundreds of its SUVs sold here and banned sales of vehicles cited as fabricating emissions results.The Ministry of Environment slapped 340 million won ($286,000) in fines on Nissan Korea and banned sales of its Qashqai model, while ordering a recall of 814 of the vehicles that have been sold in South Korea from November to last month.The ministry also said it filed a complaint with th

June 7, 2016

Foreign car sales jump 5.9% in May

Sales of foreign cars in South Korea rose 5.9 percent on-year in May as some importers secured a sufficient amount of popular car models to meet demand here, industry data showed Tuesday.According to the data compiled by the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association, a total of 19,470 units of imported cars were registered last month, up from 18,386 units tallied in the previous year.From a month earlier, May sales also spiked 9.1 percent, the data showed.The upturn was attributed

June 7, 2016

Overseas sales of Kia's Sportage SUV hit monthly record in May

Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-largest carmaker, saw its sales of the Sportage SUV around the globe hit a record high last month thanks to strong demand for its latest model, industry data showed Tuesday.According to the data, Kia Motors sold a total of 50,208 units of the Sportage in overseas markets in May, the largest-ever figure on a monthly basis since its global debut in 1993.Of them, the sales of its latest fourth-generation Sportage stood at around 42,380 units. The all-new Sport

June 7, 2016

Lotte chairman in quandary over sister’s fate

Lotte Group chairman Shin Dong-bin’s pledge to separate his family’s ownership from its influence on the group’s management was put to the test Monday amid escalating controversy over his elder sister’s involvement in a lobbying scandal.With calls mounting to fire Shin Young-ja, a former executive and a sitting boardroom member of Hotel Lotte, the chairman appears to be contemplating whether to kick his sister out or to keep her by his side.(Yonhap)Shin Young-ja, the eldest daughter of Lotte fou

June 6, 2016

Audi presents cars offering driving pleasure

Performance cars are among the highlighted themes that luxury German carmakers, including BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi, have been promoting at the 2016 Busan Motor Show, which kicked off June 2 in Busan.Audi unveiled the “new Audi R8 V10 plus” and “new Audi A6 all-road Quattro” for the first time in Korea, both of which are revamped performance-driven models offering driving pleasure. A driving shot of the new Audi R8 V10 plusThe new Audi R8 V10 plus, the higher trim option of Audi’s two-seater s

June 5, 2016

GM, Hyundai look to affordable fun-to-drive car market

Mass market auto brands like Chevrolet of General Motors and Hyundai of Hyundai Motor are paying keen attention to growing demand for performance cars that are designed for speed and have affordable prices in Korea as part of their new market development efforts. Luxury foreign brands such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz as well as super car brands including Porsche and Lamborghini have dominated the performance car market for years.2016 Chevrolet Camaro of General Motors“The performance car market is

June 5, 2016

Hyundai Motor partners with French gas supplier for fuel-cell EVs

Hyundai Motor sealed an agreement with France’s leading industrial gas supplier Air Liquide on Saturday to boost cooperation in the development of hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles, the Korean automotive giant said. 　The two companies signed a memorandum of understanding in Grenoble, a city in southeastern France, agreeing to spread the use of hydrogen fuel-cell EVs and to build more hydrogen charging infrastructure around the world.South Korean President Park Geun-hye (center) fuels hydrogen

June 5, 2016

Green cars, SUVs sweep 2016 Busan Motor Show

BUSAN – Environmentally friendly cars, including hybrid, plug-in hybrid and pure electric vehicles, were one of the most common themes that domestic and foreign automakers promoted at the 2016 Busan International Motor Show, which on Friday opened to the public at BEXCO in Busan for a 10-day run until June 12. This direction was expected as regulatory authorities are trying to reduce benefits offered to diesel car owners to cut emissions and improve air quality.  Visitors and the press look at t

June 3, 2016

Gov't to regulate older diesel cars, thermal plants to tackle fine dust

The South Korean government on Friday said it will toughen restrictions on old diesel vehicles while promoting sales of environment-friendly cars to address public health concerns over fine dust.At a gathering of senior policymakers chaired by Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, the country will take steps to make electric vehicles account for 30 percent of all automobile sales by 2020.   Hwang Kyo-ahn (Yonhap)The government also plans to limit the entry of old diesel-powered vehicles into the Seoul m

June 3, 2016

Korea's commercial vehicle exports plunge, halving trade surplus

South Korea's exports of commercial vehicles shrank significantly from a year earlier while imports surged to record levels in the first four months of the year, more than halving the country's trade surplus in the sector, industry data showed Friday.In the January-April period, the country's outbound shipments of commercial vehicles, such as trucks, came to 37,782 units, down 27.3 percent from 51,958 units over the same period last year, according to the data from the Korea Automobile Manufactu

June 3, 2016

`VW expects to start recall in Korea this summer’

BUSAN -- A representative from the Korean unit of emissions-rigging scandal-marred German carmaker Volkswagen said the company is set to submit software to the Korean Ministry of Environment to fix about 125,000 affected vehicles, a critical step to push for its recall plan here.“The software will be presented in the near future (to the ministry). Once the software is tested and approved by the ministry as planned, we expect the recall can start this summer,” Volkswagen Korea CEO Thomas Kuehl to

June 2, 2016

Genesis unveils G80, G80 Sport at Busan motor show

BUSAN - Genesis, the luxury brand Hyundai Motor created last November as an independent brand with the first model G90, unveiled second model G80 and its sport version G80 Sport for the first time at the media preview day for the 2016 Busan International Motor Show on Thursday. The G80 is a redone version of the Genesis DH luxury sedan from Hyundai Motor.  Manfred Fitzgerald (right), head of the Genesis brand, and Luc Donckerwolke, head of the design center for Genesis, pose with the G80 after t

June 2, 2016

Safety concerns growing over AmorePacific’s lip product

A growing number of consumers who purchased lip products by Aritaum, cosmetic giant AmorePacific’s budget brand, are claiming to have adverse skin reactions after applying the product, according to local reports Thursday.Online posts showing swollen lips and pustular eruptions have been uploaded by users who have complained the symptoms began only after applying Aritaum Volume-Up Oil Tint.Aritaum’s Volume Up Oil Tint (AmorePacific Mall)Reports by Environment TV quoting a dermatologist said the s

June 2, 2016

Busan Int'l Motor Show opens highlighting eco-friendly cars

Participating carmakers in this year's Busan International Motor Show have something in common amid the lingering impact of Volkswagen AG's diesel emissions scandal: environmentally friendly vehicles.In the biennial motor show, which opened Thursday and will continue through June 12 at the BEXCO exhibition hall in Busan, 453 kilometers south of Seoul, most of the 25 domestic and imported carmakers came up with a reinforced lineup with hybrid or pure-electric models or with a plan to add such mod

June 2, 2016