Kia workers stage partial strike amid pandemic

Unionized workers of Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-biggest carmaker, entered a partial strike again Wednesday as they failed to reach an agreement with the management over working conditions. Kia Motors and its union have held 15 rounds of meetings in this year's wage talks, but the two sides failed to narrow their differences over overtime work hours in the latest negotiation. Day and night shift workers will each stage four-hour strikes daily from Wednesday to Friday at plants in

Dec. 9, 2020

GV70 to target luxury SUV market

Genesis, a luxury automobile brand from Hyundai Motor Group, unveiled its second sport utility vehicle online Tuesday, the GV70. The new vehicle will be introduced in South Korea as early as January. Genesis aims to lead the luxury SUV market through the GV70. “The domestic luxury SUV market was expected to be somewhat slower than the growth of luxury SUVs abroad due to its high price. But, GV80 is writing a new history and GV70 will continue to lead the sales of mid-sized luxury SUVs

Dec. 8, 2020

[Monitor] Korean carmakers to enjoy highest sales in 18 years

South Korean carmakers are forecast to notch their highest combined sales figures in 18 years, according to industry data released Sunday. The country’s five finished automobile manufacturers sold a total of 1.47 million vehicles in Korea between January and November this year. The figure was up 6.2 percent from the same period last year. If the trend continues, total sales will surpass 1.6 million vehicles at the end of the year. This would mark the highest total since 2002. The com

Dec. 8, 2020

Korean Air to charge additional fees on emergency exit seats

Korean Air Lines Co. said Monday it will begin charging additional fees on emergency exit row seats when booking international flights next year. South Korea's biggest carrier said on its website that optional fees will be charged on exit row seats with extra legroom, which are located in the front row of each section of the economy class, starting Jan. 14. Emergency exit row seats will be limited to passengers that satisfy the official safety requirements, and those who book the seats will b

Dec. 7, 2020

[Behind the Wheel] Mercedes-Benz 2021 E-Class gets fresh, modern touch

The Mercedes-Benz E-Class is South Korea‘s most beloved imported sedan. Since its launch in 2016, the 10th generation E-Class models have sold about 160,000 units, making it the best-selling imported car in Korea. Last year, the E-Class was the top-selling luxury car among both Korean and imported cars. Maintaining the highest spot in the luxury sedan market, however, is not an easy job. Hyundai’s luxury sedan Genesis G80 came on fast this year, overtaking the E-Class. By October

Dec. 6, 2020

Renault Samsung’s QM6 climbs sales chart

Renault Samsung Motors said Thursday its sports utility vehicle QM6 has climbed the sales chart to lead company’s performance this year. According to the automaker, the QM6 model sold 4,323 units in October, up 35.6 percent from the month before. The gasoline model, QM6 GDe, which has topped the mid-sized SUV market in South Korea for the second half of this year, takes 50.7 percent of the total sales of QM6, with 2,191 units, the automaker said. The rest is taken by QM6 LPe, which is

Dec. 3, 2020

Korean Air vows no layoffs despite Asiana takeover

Korean Air’s president has said there would be no layoffs as a result of its takeover of Asiana Airlines. Woo Kee-hong, the airline’s president, said during a press briefing on Wednesday that most staff at both airlines would stay despite the takeover as Korean Air had “no plans to reduce supply.” His remarks come one day after a court ruling cleared the first legal hurdle for the acquisition. The share price of Asiana, which had been on the rise since the announcement

Dec. 2, 2020

Hyundai Motor Group reveals new platform dedicated to electric cars

Hyundai Motor unveiled on Wednesday its new battery electric vehicle (BEV) dedicated platform, which will serve as the core technology for the automobile group’s next-generation electric vehicles. The automaker said the Electric-Global Modular Platform, or E-GMP, would underpin a range of new vehicles starting 2021, including Hyundai Motor’s Ioniq 5 and Kia Motor’s first electric vehicle to be revealed next year. Battery electric vehicles are those that only use energy stored

Dec. 2, 2020

Hyundai vehicle sales in US fall 9% in Nov.

Hyundai Motor Co. said Wednesday its vehicle sales in the United States fell 9 percent last month from a year earlier on lower demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Hyundai Motor sold 55,171 vehicles in the US in November, down from 60,601 units in the same period of last year, the company said in a statement. The monthly sales declined as "there were three fewer selling days and one less selling weekend" last month amid COVID-19 challenges, it said. "We've never had a better pr

Dec. 2, 2020

Mercedes-Benz Korea launches new E-Class Coupe, Cabriolet

Mercedes-Benz Korea said Tuesday it has officially launched new models for its revamped E-Class -- two Coupe models and a Cabriolet -- completing the lineup of its bestselling luxury sedan family. The automaker presented a four-seater coupe, the new Mercedes-Benz E 450 Coupe, and the high-performance AMG variant, the new Mercedes-AMG E 53 4Matic+ Coupe. Also launched was a four-seater open-top model, the new Mercedes-Benz E 450 4Matic Cabriolet. The launch of the new E-Class Coupe and E-Class

Dec. 1, 2020

Court clears path for Korean Air to buy Asiana

A court on Tuesday rejected an injunction request against Korean Air’s plans to take over Asiana Airlines, in the latest step giving a boost to the high-profile acquisition deal involving South Korea’s two national flag carriers. “The case involving issuance of new shares is in accordance with the commercial law and Hanjin KAL’s articles of incorporation and has been done within necessary boundaries to achieve the goal of managing a consolidated airline,” the Seou

Dec. 1, 2020

SsangYong's Nov. sales rise 10% on increased exports

SsangYong Motor Co. said Tuesday its sales jumped 10 percent last month from a year earlier, helped by increased exports. SsangYong Motor sold 11,859 vehicles in November, up from 10,754 units a year ago due to strong overseas demand for its SUV models despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales rose 0.3 percent to 9,270 units from 9,240 during the same period, and exports surged 71 percent to 2,589 from 1,514, it said. The SUV-focused carmaker said it wil

Dec. 1, 2020

Volvo Cars Korea donates W300m to support disabled children

Volvo Cars Korea said Monday it delivered a donation of 300 million won ($271,000) to a nonprofit organization to support children with disabilities. Since 2017, Volvo Cars Korea has been working with Purme Foundation to support children with disabilities undergoing rehabilitation, the company said. The funds delivered will be used to provide assistive devices to 100 children and teenagers under 18, and for operation of a children’s rehabilitation hospital, the automaker said. &ldquo

Nov. 30, 2020

SsangYong Motor approved to test Level 3 autonomous vehicle

SsangYong Motor said Monday it has gained government approval to test-run Level 3 self-driving technology for its Korando model, and will start test-driving the vehicle on regular roads next month. The autonomous vehicle of the company’s compact crossover sport utility vehicle Korando is the second model for the automaker to receive such approval, following the Tivoli Air, the company said. South Korea‘s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has introduced a permission s

Nov. 30, 2020

Jin Air to resume flights to Fukuoka next month

Jin Air Co., the budget carrier unit of Korean Air Lines Co., said Monday it will resume flights to Fukuoka next month on eased entry restrictions in Japan. Jin Air will provide one flight a week on the Incheon-Fukuoka route from Tuesday mainly to meet business travel demand, the company said in a statement. The Fukuoka route was suspended nine months ago as more than 180 countries and territories strengthened entry restrictions to stem the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Jin Air currently

Nov. 30, 2020

Hyundai Motor, Naver partner on mobility

South Korea’s leading automaker and search engine platform have agreed to work together on tech services and seek partnerships with small firms. Hyundai Motor Group said Sunday that it agreed to work with Naver to cooperate in three business areas -- media and platform content, new mobility services and new business models -- and build relationships with small and midsized enterprises. Chi Young-cho, Hyundai Motor Group’s executive vice president for strategy and technology, and

Nov. 29, 2020

Korean Air's Asiana takeover requires regulatory approval from 4 countries

South Korea's biggest carrier Korean Air Lines Co.'s planned acquisition of the debt-laden Asiana Airlines Inc. requires approval from antitrust authorities in at least four other countries, industry sources said Sunday. According to the aviation industry sources and the Fair Trade Commission (FTC), the planned merger requires review from authorities in the United States, European Union (EU), China and Japan. A failure would jeopardize the deal valued at 1.8 trillion won ($1.6 billion) that w

Nov. 29, 2020

Auto recalls top 2m this year: data

The number of automobiles subject to recalls topped 2 million in the first 10 months of the year, marking the fourth straight year of auto recalls exceeding the threshold, industry data showed on Sunday. According to the data, a total of 2.04 million units was subject to recalls in the January-October period, up 56.2 percent from a year earlier. Last year, a total of 2.16 million units was subject to recalls. Last week, Hyundai Motor Co., Mercedes-Benz Korea and four other companies were orde

Nov. 29, 2020

Korea Air wins W290b F-16 maintenance deal

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's biggest carrier, said Thursday it has received a 290 billion won ($260 million) F-16 maintenance order in the United States.  In the 10-year deal signed with the US Department of Defense, Korean Air will be in charge of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) work for the life extension of the F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft deployed to the US air forces in South Korea and Japan, the company said in a statement. The national flag carrier has been providi

Nov. 26, 2020

Hyundai, Kia's EV exports set to exceed 100,000 units this year

Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. said Thursday they are set to export over 100,000 electric vehicles this year on growing demand for environment-friendly cars. Hyundai and Kia shipped a combined 98,505 EVs from January to October, jumping 71 percent from 57,517 units during the same period of last year, according to the companies. "Stricter emission rules in Europe drove up demand for all-electric and less-emitting models," a Hyundai spokesman said. Hyundai's

Nov. 26, 2020