Most Popular
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Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
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Yoon's approval rating plunges to all-time low
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Will tug-of-war between doctors, government end soon?
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Climate impacts set to cut 2050 global GDP by nearly a fifth
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Trilateral talks acknowledge ‘serious’ slumps of won, yen
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[Graphic News] More Koreans say they plan long-distance trips this year
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[KH Explains] Hyundai's full hybrid edge to pay off amid slow transition to pure EVs
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North Korea removes streetlights along cross-border roads with South
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Russia's denial of entry of S. Korean national unrelated to bilateral ties: Seoul official
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Farming households dip below 1m for first time in 2023
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Ghosn tested as Nissan electric push falters
Carlos Ghosn laid a $5 billion bet in 2009 that the world’s next Ford Model T would be electric, and that Nissan Motor Co. would lead a revolution embraced by nations such as Denmark. Three years later, sales of Leaf plug- in vehicles in the Nordic country: 73.Nissan’s chief executive officer has long fronted a campaign to convince the world that by the end of the decade, 1 in 10 cars sold will be electric. Customers haven’t bought in, as prices remain high and charging stations are few and far
March 24, 2013
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Creating a truly sustainable automotive industry
This is the second in a three-part series of stories contributed by BMW Group Korea. The author is currently CFO at the company in Seoul. ― Ed.“Sustainable” ― what does it actually mean? It’s a strange word, isn’t it? Although it’s a trendy term and on everyone’s lips, I decided to go the extra mile and look it up in German. The dictionary proposes “nachhaltig” another word that sounds vague to me, even though I am German. Feeding this German word into a French dictionary, however, is much more
March 24, 2013
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Fiat aims to break through with 500
Cruising down Seoul in the Fiat 500 will definitely make you stand out. Out of the 3 million cars on the roads of this bustling metropolis, there are only about 100 of these iconic subcompacts to be seen, as it was only launched in Korea in February. It’s not the first time that the Italian carmaker has tried its hand here, but Fiat had to withdraw its Korean business in the late 1990s when its local manufacturing partner Kia Motors went bankrupt. Even at the time, the 500 ― born in 1957 ― had n
March 24, 2013
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Jaguar’s design chief to visit Seoul next week
Jaguar’s design chief Ian Callum will make his first visit to Korea next week to unveil the much-anticipated two-seat sports car F-Type during the Seoul Motor Show, Jaguar Land Rover Korea said Friday. The top car designer, who will be accompanied by Land Rover’s design studio director David Saddington, plans to hold a special design session to discuss the British carmaker’s design philosophy at the motor show’s media preview on March 28. Callum took office as the design chief for Jaguar in 1999
March 22, 2013
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EU hydrogen car project to use Hyundai Tucson ix
Hyundai Motor said Sunday that its hydrogen fuel cell sport utility vehicle Tucson ix, whose export name is ix35, will be used in the next round of the European Union’s pilot program promoting environment-friendly cars. Hyundai last month announced it started the mass production of the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, becoming the first carmaker to do so in the world. The company expects sales to begin in Europe in 2015. Following its first participation in 2011, the Tucson ix will also join the seco
March 17, 2013
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Volkswagen, Apple flaws identified in China
Owners of Volkswagen AG’s cars in China have reported instances of abnormal vibrations, loss of power and sudden acceleration, state-owned China Central Television said in its annual consumer rights program. The problems are related to the direct-shift gearbox system, the state broadcaster said Saturday in its program marking World Consumer Rights Day. Volkswagen “will contact the involved customers to fix the issue as quickly as we can,” Christoph Ludewig, a VW spokesman, said in an emailed sta
March 17, 2013
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Renault Samsung invests in services
When we compare our Korean customers’ expectations with other markets, we note very high expectations of having showrooms and service centers nearby, the availability of appointments and the quality of service.In many European countries, specific service chains have thrived by differentiating themselves with a no-appointment-needed policy, but in Korea this is the basic service offered by service shops, thanks to the “ppali ppali” Korean culture.The reception areas are much bigger than in other
March 17, 2013
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Ford cuts pay for CEO after falling short of targets
Ford Motor Co. cut Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally’s compensation by 29 percent last year after the second-largest U.S. automaker fell short of its targets for profit, cash flow and market share. Mulally received $2 million in salary, $3.95 million in bonus and $15 million in stock, options and other compensation, Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford said Thursday in a regulatory filing. That compares with $2 million in salary, $5.46 million in bonus and $22 million in other compensation for 2011.
March 17, 2013
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Peter Schreyer fatigue?
Without a doubt, Peter Schreyer, the top design executive for both Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, was the central architect behind Kia’s rare success with the “K series.” Among the series, the K5, launched in 2010 and known as the updated Optima in overseas markets, became the series’ flagship model.On the back of this success, Kia turned around its sales revenue, recording an increase of 43 trillion won in 2011, with operating profit reaching 3.5 trillion won. The famous Tiger Nose grill which
March 17, 2013
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Hyundai nurtures young Brazilian talent
Hyundai Motor, which is gaining sales momentum in Brazil, is expanding social contribution activities as part of its efforts to renew its brand image there. On top of that, it is focusing on supporting young Brazilian talent through internship programs. The Korean auto giant, which entered the Brazil market in 1992, suffered a 29 percent plunge in car sales in the first half of last year after the Brazilian government toughened regulations and increased tariffs on imported car brands. Hyundai, h
March 10, 2013
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Ferrari hybrid hits resurgent market
Ferrari, Bentley, Jaguar, and Rolls- Royce are roaring back with new leather-swathed models after a drop last year in European sales of ultra-luxury cars.At the Geneva Motor Show last week, Ferrari showed a 1 million-euro ($1.3 million) hybrid called LaFerrari. Bentley exhibited a revamped four-door Continental Flying Spur. Jaguar debuted the XFR-S, its fastest sedan ever. Rolls-Royce is adding a 245,000-euro coupe called the Wraith to its lineup. The highest end of the market ― vehicles costing
March 10, 2013
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Jaguar XJ goes irresistibly light
Namhae ― Dieting is all the rage among luxury carmakers today, from slimmed-down bodies to smaller engines. Jaguar’s take on the trend was to put the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine from the Range Rover Evoque into its flagship XJ sedan. The British luxury carmaker, whose presence has been growing recently in Korea, believes the lighter, cheaper engine lineup ― priced at 190 million won ($175,000) ― will enable it to access new customers. (Korea is the fourth-largest market fo
March 10, 2013
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[Photo News] Hyundai's new SUV
March 7, 2013
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Ford, GM say U.S. cuts won’t hurt demand
Automakers led by General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. predict demand for cars and trucks, on pace for the best year since 2007, will remain resilient even as the U.S. was unable to avert government spending cuts that took effect Friday. Vehicles on U.S. roads are the oldest on average in history, and Americans will continue to look to replace them with more fuel-efficient models also equipped with better technology features, the automakers’ sales executives said Friday. Ford reported its best
March 3, 2013
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Hyundai-Kia ends overnight shifts
Hyundai Motor Group, which owns Hyundai and Kia brands, starts a new reduced-hours working system Monday, putting an end to the Korean auto giant’s 45-year-old overnight shift. Following an agreement between labor and management last year, Hyundai has replaced the previous practice of two 10-hour shifts with two shifts of eight or nine hours each. According to a statement published Sunday, daily working hours at Hyundai and Kia factories will be shortened from 10 to 8.5 hours per person, which m
March 3, 2013
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A different driving experience
The Korea Herald, in cooperation with carmakers, offers a test-driving experience to executive officials at Korean or multinational companies or ranking diplomats here. The opinion below is the author’s own. For any inquiry into this column, please contact jylee@heraldcorp.com. ― Ed.When the Panamera was unveiled by Porsche, a renowned brand that represented an uncompromising motor sports for the purists, my feelings were very mixed. Of course, we have the Cayenne SUV, which was an even bigger s
March 3, 2013
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Hopes riding high for new Mercedes-Benz CEO
Britta Seeger officially stepped behind the wheel of Mercedes-Benz Korea as chief executive last week.She will be the first foreign woman to head an import car firm.That in itself was enough to make headlines in Korea, where automakers are still defined by masculinity.A host of women recently rose to executive posts in the industry, but Seeger is a rarity in that she is both a woman and a non-Korean. It would be an understatement to say she has a lot on her plate as such. Unlike her predecessor,
March 3, 2013
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Carmakers to unveil new cars at Geneva motor show
South Korean automakers plan to unveil new cars and facelifted models at a motor show in Switzerland next month in a bid to strengthen their presence in Europe, a company official said Monday.Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea’s top automaker, will unveil the facelifted model of its Tucson ix35 sports utility vehicle at the International Motor Show Geneva that is set to open on March 5 and run through March 17.Hyundai also said it will premier a seven-seat sports utility vehicle under the project na
Feb. 25, 2013
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Volkswagen profit forecast falls short
Volkswagen AG, Europe’s largest automaker, forecast that 2013 operating profit will match last year’s level, falling short of analysts’ estimates, as the shrinking auto market in its home region weighs on earnings. Earnings before interest and taxes, which rose 2.1 percent to 11.5 billion euros ($15.2 billion) in 2012, probably won’t increase this year, Wolfsburg, Germany-based Volkswagen said Friday in a statement. The average estimate of 14 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg is for 2013 profit of
Feb. 24, 2013
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Imported cars have changed market landscape in Korea
Imported passenger cars have seen tremendous growth in South Korea over the last few years. In 2012 for instance, BMW Korea sold three times more cars than it did in 2009. However, contrary to other markets with similar or even higher growth rates, the total domestic market has been quite stable, with annual sales totaling around 1.2 million units. Don’t we forget there was a huge backlog with an exceptionally low segment share of imported vehicles of around 3 percent only a few years ago, where
Feb. 24, 2013