Hyundai Motor Co. and its sister Kia Motors Corp. expect to post a record market share in major newly industrialized countries this year, sources at the South Korean carmakers said Monday.Insiders at the two flagship companies of Hyundai Motor Group said combined sales in the BRICs ― Brazil, Russia, India and China ― reached 2.34 million units over 11 months this year for a market share of 10.9 percent. This represents a 0.7 percentage point gain from the year before and the highest-ever market

South Korea may still be able to join ongoing negotiations for a regional trade pact known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), although it may have come to the table just a little too late, perhaps a bit intentionally, according to officials Monday. It wasn’t until Nov. 29, nearly three years after the 12-nation TPP negotiations were launched in 2010, that South Korea has sought to join the negotiations.Last week, Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Wendy Cutler said it would be "very di

The South Korean stock market is expected to edge up next week once financial uncertainties are eased after the U.S. monetary policy-setting meeting slated for Dec. 17-18, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 1.2 percent from the previous week to close at 1,962.91 Friday.Earlier this week, Seoul shares lost ground as investors took a wait-and-see approach amid the weak growth momentum in the market, sparked by the rising concerns over a potential tapering o

South Korean retailers are competitively foraying overseas, seeking new sources for business growth to replace the much-saturated domestic market, but the latest industry data indicate they will have to wait before any meaningful profit.According to the survey by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), annual sales by 61 retailers operating abroad have been on the increase since 2010 when they rose 17.2 percent on-year. Their combined sales for 2013 are predicted to increase 39.6 perc

Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co., a South Korean shipbuilder, announced Friday it has secured a 602.7 billion won ($572.6 million) deal with Britain’s BP Shipping Ltd. to provide 14 petrochemical carriers. The vessels will be delivered by July 2017, the South Korean firm said in a regulatory filing. The latest deal is an addition to orders announced Monday by Hyundai Mipo, a subsidiary of Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., for six PC carriers worth about $44 million per unit from foreign shipping companies

A top U.S. trade official said it would be "very difficult" for South Korea to join the ongoing Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, which are on the verge of a deal."We think we are in the end game ... I think it will be very, very difficult for any country, including (South) Korea, to join the ongoing negotiations if you just look at the timetable and the clock," Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Wendy Cutler said at a forum here.After months of taking a wait-and-see stance, the

The state-run Korea National Oil Corp. said Thursday that it has successfully supplied crude oil produced by its own subsidiary from abroad to a top domestic refinery for the first time.The crude, known as Forties, is the leading oil reserve in the North Sea region.KNOC has sold 2 million barrels of such crude to GS Caltex, the nation’s oldest private oil refiner, through Dana Petroleum, its British subsidiary acquired in September 2010, where 300,000 barrels were directly produced by the subsid