Foreign-invested companies rated South Korea’s business environment as excellent overall, but were unsatisfied with the labor environment and the passive attitude of the authorities, survey showed Monday. The Federation of Korean Industries conducted a survey for trade and investment officers as well as foreign economic organizations of the top 50 foreign investment countries in Korea about the business environment in the nation. The survey took place from Oct. 12 to Nov. 6.　 While givi

Industry Nov. 30, 2020

South Korea’s major business organizations will see the terms of their incumbent chiefs end early next year, with attention being paid to who their successors will be. The term of Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Park Yong-maan, Korea International Trade Association Chairman Kim Young-ju and Federation of Korean Industries Chairman Huh Chang-soo will end in March. Each business group plans to hold a general meeting early next year to elect its next leader. For the KCCI

Industry Nov. 25, 2020

Representatives from the Korean and US governments and industries joined to provide their insights on key factors that Korean companies should consider when investing in the US, at the Doing Business in Korea Seminar 2020, its second iteration, held in Seoul on Tuesday. The seminar was jointly hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea and the Korea International Trade Association. It also covered the impact of the US presidential election on investment opportunities abroad. In his

Industry Nov. 24, 2020

Posco CEO Choi Jeong-woo announced his intention to serve consecutive terms at a board meeting early this month, the company confirmed on Tuesday.  According to Posco, the board of directors resolved to run a “CEO nomination committee” and began reviewing the qualifications for the reappointment of Choi. Under the company’s articles of association, a CEO must disclose his intention to serve another term three months before the end of his term. Cho’s three-year ter

Industry Nov. 24, 2020

Samsung Heavy Industries has won orders worth $2.5 billion from European shipowners, according to the firm’s regulatory filings Monday. It is the shipbuilder’s largest single order achieved since its establishment in 1974. The shipbuilder said it signed the contract with European shipowners to supply blocks and equipment for ships. The contract period runs until December 2025. The order volume is equivalent to 38.2 percent of last year’s total sales. The value of the order is

Mobility Nov. 23, 2020

Mercedes-Benz Korea said it is strengthening its digital-based customer experience for preemptive and professional services. The automaker said it is steadily investing in expanding digital-based services that customers can use without having to visit showrooms and service centers in person. One of the digital services is “Sales Touch,” an integrated digital sales platform that carries out all the necessary procedures for vehicle contracts through mobile or tablet devices without

Mobility Nov. 23, 2020

Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors overtook German brand BMW to rank fourth in the global electric vehicle market this year, data showed Monday. Local research company SNE Research said Hyundai and Kia sold a combined 130,000 EVs in the global market between January and September this year. The figure is up 40.7 percent from the same period last year. The strong performance was driven by a surge in sales of the Kia Niro, Hyundai Kona, Kia XCeed Plug-in Hybrid and Hyundai Porter 2 Electric. The co

Mobility Nov. 23, 2020

South Korea’s largest automaker Hyundai Motor and London-based chemicals company Ineos have partnered to explore new business opportunities in the global hydrogen economy, the automaker said Monday.  Earlier on Friday, the two companies signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly investigate opportunities for the production and supply of hydrogen as well as the worldwide deployment of hydrogen applications and technologies. The two companies plan to introduce a new hydrogen elec

Mobility Nov. 23, 2020

As the pandemic continues, car camping is gaining popularity for many outdoor enthusiasts seeking ways to follow the social-distancing measures. Ssangyong Motor, which specializes in sport utility vehicles, has been riding on the trend, as its vehicles focus on large cargo capacity, convenience and safety. For one, its 2021 compact SUV Tivoli Air is able to transform itself into a driver’s outdoor movie theater. When the second-row seats are folded down, the indoor space reaches 1,879 m

Mobility Nov. 22, 2020

Korean Air President Woo Ki-hong said the firm would push for employees’ leave of absence instead of cutting headcount once the merger with Asiana Airlines takes place. “Korean Air has never undergone artificial restructuring over the past 51 years,” Woo told reporters after the 22nd Tourism Industry Committee meeting in Seoul on Friday. “In order to increase efficiency after the merger, (some) employees will take a leave of absence until the end of the coronavirus cr

Mobility Nov. 20, 2020

Volkswagen Korea said its mid-sized sport utility vehicle Tiguan surpassed 10,000 units in cumulative annual sales, a first for an imported SUV, the automaker said Thursday. According to Volkswagen Korea, the accumulated number of registered Tiguan units sold locally this year is 10,043. Tiguan has sold a total of more than 55,000 units since its debut in Korea in July 2008. This is the first time that annual sales have exceeded 10,000 units since the launch. The automaker said the key to T

Mobility Nov. 19, 2020

As daily confirmed coronavirus cases in South Korea exceeded 300 for the second consecutive day, large companies feared another bout of shutdowns similar to that during the first wave of the pandemic early this year. Over the past few days, Samsung, LG, SK and Hyundai Motor closed some of their office buildings after their employees were infected. On Wednesday, Samsung Electronics said one employee working at its mobile research center in Suwon was confirmed to have coronavirus. The firm clo

Industry Nov. 19, 2020

Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae said Wednesday that the merger of the nation’s two largest carriers, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, will not lead to price hikes or workforce restructuring. After attending the Korea-US Business Meeting at the Federation of Korean Industries in Seoul, Cho told reporters, “There may be concerns about such a (monopoly),” but “there will be no (lower) customer convenience or price hikes.” Regarding the restructuring of the workfor

Mobility Nov. 18, 2020

The number of companies joining the “Happiness Alliance,” a social contribution alliance led by SK Group to support children in the blind spots, has surpassed 100, the group said Wednesday. SK Group said it held “2020 Happy Alliance Day” in Seoul on Tuesday to share business results so far. Chairman Chey Tae-won said in the opening speech, “Among many social problems, I thought it was necessary to first solve the problem of children being placed in nutritional i

Industry Nov. 18, 2020

GM Korea’s labor union, which is in a tug-of-war with the management over wage and collective bargaining negotiations, is set to stage another four-day partial strike starting Tuesday, adding to the uncertainties facing the automaker as it struggles with weak performance. The GM Korea union said Monday that it had decided at a central dispute committee meeting to stage a four-hour partial strike from Tuesday to Friday. It will be the fourth partial strike in this year’s wage negotia

Mobility Nov. 17, 2020