Kia Motors becomes 11th largest firm by market cap, mulls name change

Kia Motors has overtaken Hyundai Mobis to stand as the 11th-largest company by market capitalization in South Korea on Thursday. According to the Korea Exchange, the carmaker’s market capitalization was 23.5 trillion won ($21.1 billion), up 6.61 percent from the day before when the market closed Wednesday. The recent bump in market capitalization leaves behind Hyundai Mobis as Kia Motors inches toward the ranks of the top 10 players in the country’s stock market. The last time the

Nov. 12, 2020

Hyundai launches Sonata N Line in S. Korea

Hyundai Motor Co. on Thursday launched the Sonata N Line model in the domestic market to diversify its lineup. The Sonata N Line sedan comes with a 2.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine and an eight-speed dual clutch transmission, the company said in a statement. It can reach 100 kilometers per hour in 6.5 seconds and is equipped with safety features, such as the lane keeping assist and front collision avoidance systems, it said. The model is priced at 30 million won-36 million won ($27,00

Nov. 12, 2020

Renault Samsung CEO vows to maintain good relations with labor union

GAPYEONG, Gyeonggi Province -- Renault Samsung Motors CEO Dominique Signora stressed the importance of maintaining good labor relations Wednesday, following the reelection of a hardline union chief days before.  Speaking to reporters during a test-driving event for the revamped QM6, Signora also said his company would make utmost efforts to gain competitiveness in global sales, as exports are crucial for company sales.  The automaker decided to export the XM3, its compact sports util

Nov. 11, 2020

Drone taxi flies over Seoul in first test flight

A drone taxi flew over Yeouido, Seoul, for the first time Wednesday morning as part of South Korea’s road map to realize the commercialization of urban air mobility by 2025. The Seoul Metropolitan Government co-hosted an event with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to demonstrate the drone taxi as part of future mobility that could ease the city’s traffic congestion. For the demonstration, one two-seater drone aircraft -- with no one on board -- was used. The air

Nov. 11, 2020

[Herald Interview] Han Sung Motor takes big leap in digital customer journey

Mercedes-Benz Korea official dealer Han Sung Motor plans to continue investment to meet customer expectations and to accelerate the digital customer journey in the post-COVID-19 era, the CEO said in an interview with The Korea Herald. “Korea is now the fifth-biggest market for Mercedes-Benz in the world,” said Han Sung Motor’s CEO Ulf Ausprung in its Seoul headquarters where luxury Cheongdam showroom is located. “There was an immense development in the Korean car marke

Nov. 11, 2020

Renault bets on SUV models to revive sales in S. Korea

GAPYEONG -- Renault Samsung Motors Corp., the South Korean unit of Renault SA, will focus on promoting SUV models to revive sales amid the coronavirus pandemic, the company's country manager said Wednesday. Renault Samsung has suffered a sharp decline in sales this year in Asia's fourth-biggest economy due to lack of new models and the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on production and sales. "We don't really know about the market because of the coronavirus, but the QM6 SUV and the XM3 SUV (set

Nov. 11, 2020

GM Korea workers continue partial strike over wage talks

Unionized workers at GM Korea Co. said Wednesday that they will continue their partial strike this week for higher wages despite the company's statement that it may reconsider planned investments in its plants. GM Korea's daytime and night-duty workers will stage a four-hour strike from Wednesday to Friday, while continuing to refuse to work overtime during the week and on the weekend, union spokesman Cho Ha-soo said over the phone. The daytime and night workers already held two rounds of par

Nov. 11, 2020

Hyundai to produce new Tucson SUV in US plant next year

South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. said Tuesday it will produce the all-new Tucson SUV in its US plant to meet local demand for SUV models. Hyundai Motor plans to produce the 2022 Tucson gasoline and gasoline hybrid models in the Alabama plant next year for the sale of the compact SUV in the US market starting early next year, the company said in a statement. The Tucson with a gasoline and a gasoline hybrid engine will also be manufactured in Hyundai's main Ulsan plant in South Korea. The 2022

Nov. 10, 2020

[Behind the Wheel] Tivoli Air returns for young outdoor enthusiasts

SsangYong Motor’s Tivoli Air returned again a year after its discontinuation to attract young outdoor enthusiasts in the wake of the pandemic. Tivoli, which was introduced as SsangYong’s first compact sport utility vehicle in 2016, was discontinued last year due to weak sales. However, as demand for small SUVs grows among young drivers for low-risk outdoor activities during the pandemic, Tivoli nimbly returned with more cargo space and greater cost efficiency. Tivoli should now

Nov. 8, 2020

Jeju Air, T’way Air resume flights to Tokyo

Budget airlines Jeju Air and T’way Air said on Friday they will be resuming flights between Incheon and Narita following the easing of travel restrictions between the two countries. From Nov. 21, Jeju Air will fly once a week on a Saturday from Incheon to Narita International Airport, nearly three months after the flight was suspended after a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases. The Incheon-Osaka route, which had previously operated two times a day on weekdays, will also change to Frid

Nov. 6, 2020

Renault Samsung launches revamped QM6 with new design

Renault Samsung Motors said Friday it launched a revamped model of its bestselling sports utility vehicle QM6. The updated QM6 is the second face-lift for the SUV since June 2019, when it was first upgraded as the QM6 LPe, the country’s first LPG-powered SUV, and the premium trim Premiere. This time, major changes were made to the appearance, with a new chrome radiator grille, Quantum Wing, the automaker said.  “Since the first launch in 2016, QM6 has numerous records in

Nov. 6, 2020

GM Korea puts off investment in Bupyeong plant due to wage strike

GM Korea said Friday it would put off a plan to invest in its Bupyeong plant, which was scheduled for the production of next-generation global products, as workers’ strike continued.  GM Korea offered to invest about 215 billion won ($190 million) in its first plant in Bupyeong, which produces Chevrolet Trailblazer, during the 19th round of negotiations held last month. The automaker said it has already suffered a serious cash liquidity crisis due to production losses of more than 6

Nov. 6, 2020

GM Korea workers wage strike despite pandemic

While the automobile industry continues to face difficulties amid the pandemic, GM Korea’s labor union has decided to stage another three-day partial strike in protest against the management over wage and collective agreement negotiations, the automaker confirmed Thursday. The GM Korea branch of the hard-line umbrella labor union the Korean Metal Workers’ Union held a central committee meeting on the day to draw up guidelines for the struggle, including partial strikes. Accordin

Nov. 5, 2020

Budget carrier Jeju Air expected to receive W190b in state support

Jeju Air, South Korea's top low-cost carrier, is expected to receive some 190 billion won ($169 million) in state financial support, as the company seeks to overcome a pandemic-caused cash crunch, sources said Thursday. The main creditor, the Export-Import Bank of Korea, has conducted due diligence on Jeju Air and estimated it needs a capital injection of about 198 billion won, according to the sources. In May, South Korea launched a 40 trillion-won fund to provide financial aid to the count

Nov. 5, 2020

Korean Air Q3 losses deepen on virus impact

Korean Air Lines, South Korea's biggest carrier, said Thursday its net losses widened in the third quarter from a year earlier amid the pandemic. Net losses widened to 385.93 billion won ($343 million) in the three months that ended in September from 211.85 billion won in the same period of last year, the company said in a statement. Korean Air has suspended most of its flights on international routes since March as travel demand dried up amid virus fears. Flights to Tokyo, Frankfurt, Paris

Nov. 5, 2020

Renault Samsung sponsors ECCK’s fundraising race contest with Twizy

Renault Samsung Motors said Wednesday it had started a race contest with the European Chamber of Commerce in Korea involving its electric vehicle Twizy, to encourage donations from ECCK member firms. The automaker said it is participating in the event hosted by the ECCK, as the main sponsor to provide five units of its ultracompact model, Twizy. For the four-day event, the five Twizy cars departed from Seoul and will stop at Daejeon and Daegu before arriving in Busan on Friday. The fundrai

Nov. 4, 2020

Hyundai’s US retail sales up 10% in October

Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors saw their retail sales rise in the US market last month, according to the automaker’s US units Wednesday. In the performance data released on the website of Hyundai Motor America, total sales in October recorded 57,395 units, up one percent from the same month last year. Retail sales reached 52,117 units, up 10 percent year-on-year. HMA said sales of sport utility vehicles, which accounted for 68 percent of total retail sales, increased 23 percent. Sales vo

Nov. 4, 2020

Hankook Tire supplies tires for Audi RS models

Hankook Tire & Technology Co., the world's seventh-largest tiremaker by sales, said Wednesday it has been supplying tires for Audi RS models this year. Hankook Tire has supplied the high-performance Ventus S1 evo 3 and Winter i*cept evo2 tires for Audi's RS 7 Sportback sedan and RS6 Avante wagon since early this year, the company said in a statement. The company didn't provide an exact time frame for the supply deal or the value of the deal. The tiremaker has supplied original equipment

Nov. 4, 2020

Chung meets union, urges cooperation in crisis

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun met with the labor union for the first time since taking office. With both labor and management under new leadership, the automaker, which has long struggled with its militant union, now sees hope of stabilizing the relationship for the first time in 11 years. 　 Chung had a lunch meeting on Friday with Lee Sang-soo, head of the labor union, after President Moon Jae-in’s visits to Hyundai’s Ulsan production plants the same day, according to

Nov. 3, 2020

Jin Air becomes first South Korean budget airline to deliver cargo to US

Budget airline Jin Air said Monday that it has begun flying cargo to the United States as part of efforts to survive the COVID-19 pandemic. Though major South Korean airlines have resorted to cargo services to offset the impact of the virus in recent months, the sister airline of Korean Air is the first low-cost carrier in the country to deliver cargo to the US. On Sunday, Jin Air flew its B777-200ER passenger jet from Incheon to Los Angeles, carrying 23 tons of displays and other electronic

Nov. 2, 2020