Hyundai Motor said Tuesday that it has signed a sponsorship agreement with France’s soccer club Olympique Lyonnais for the next two years. The team, commonly known as Lyon, plays in France’s highest football division, Ligue 1, winning the league championships seven consecutive times since the 2001-2002 season. With the new partnership, Hyundai said, it aims to raise its brand awareness in Europe. Between 2007 and 2011, an estimated 240 million fans across Europe watched Lyon. Korea’s largest car

A recent OECD survey found that Koreans work the longest hours per year (2,193 hours) among OECD countries. The OECD average stands at mere 1,749 hours. However, working long hours is not necessarily linked to higher productivity.In fact, SAS, a software company well-known for its great working environment, recommends its engineers to work strictly eight hours as it is more costly to find and correct errors made by disengaged or overworked engineers. Similarly, Towers Watson’s recent employee su

Analysts say strong leadership helps chipmaker improve financial conditionsHalf a year has passed since Hynix, the world’s No. 2 memory chip maker, came under the wing of SK Group, the nation’s third-largest conglomerate. Since then, SK Group has put Hynix under its tight control and sought to implant the conglomerate’s corporate culture at the chipmaker.Last month, the renamed SK Hynix said it posted 23 billion won ($20.4 million) in operating profit for the second quarter, bouncing back into t

This is the third in a series of articles to mark the 20th anniversary of diplomatic ties between South Korea and China. ― Ed.The economic interdependence between Korea and China has grown rapidly ever since the two countries established diplomatic ties 20 years ago and is expected to increase further despite changing circumstances. The two-way trade volume has snowballed nearly 35-fold since 1992, making China Korea’s biggest trading partner.Both being export-driven economies, Korea and China s

‘Re-imagine! Life beyond Media’ slogan represents Herald’s futureHerald Corp., the parent company of The Korea Herald, will present its new corporate identity focused on “Life beyond Media.”Aiming to be at the center of consumers’ lives by taking on new projects like eco-friendly manufacturing and distribution, it expects to grow to 10 times its current size within a decade, its officials said.The firm has also changed its company name from Herald Media to Herald Corp. to emphasize its goal to e

In the digital media era, newspaper companies around the world have adopted new approaches and tools to deliver their stories.With the Internet’s ever more important place in everyday life, a newspaper group’s power can be judged not only by its print circulation, but also by the number of people who read and comment on its articles online.To find its footing at this crucial time, The Korea Herald has tracked mobile-oriented trends and made innovations to stay ahead in the race.Under a “digital

Asiana Airlines signed a memorandum of understanding with the nation’s leading online auction and commerce site G-market on adding a new flight mileage policy on Monday.According to the expanded mileage policy starting from Aug. 13, G-market customers who enter the e-shopping site directly at www.gmarket.co.kr can accumulate mileage points that correspond to the amount of their purchase. The new mileage policy is compatible with other G-market offers such as “G Mileage” and “G Stamp.”Before the

Mobile card boosts Hana-SK Card salesThe nation’s major card companies are jumping into the mobile card market as customer demand rises, financial sources said Monday.The companies are forecasting that plastic credit cards will be replaced with mobile cards in the next two to three years following the expansion of smartphones, the sources said.The fast growth of the newcomer Hana-SK Card, which has been pioneering the mobile card business here, may support the assumption. Hana-SK Card, which was

Mandarin oranges, apples, grapes moving north due to rising temperaturesKorea’s agricultural map is seeing drastic changes, with mandarin oranges growing north of Jeju Island, as the country increasingly experiences subtropical weather.The concept of regional specialties such as Jeju tangerines, Cheongdo peaches, Gyeongsan grapes and Daegu apples has lost meaning as the boundaries for crop cultivation have migrated northward due to rising temperatures.It has already been several years since tang

Multinational auto and construction equipment makers have started running English summer camps for their employees’ children. The purpose is to heighten workers’ sense of pride and devotion to the company and also to help their children develop global mindsets.Volvo Construction Equipment Korea kicked off the “2012 Volvo Super Junior Camp” at its Pyeongtaek education center, scheduled to run to Aug. 15. About 120 children are participating, the company said.Company officials said the program aim

Early start, great business model continuing success indicators for his company, says local unit chiefSometimes, it’s good to be first. The multinational leader in the elevators, escalators and moving walkways business began operations in Korea more than 100 years ago, when it installed the nation’s first service elevator in 1910 for the Bank of Korea and the first passenger elevator for the Westin Chosun Hotel four years later. And Otis Elevator Korea has continued riding on its early success.