Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. said Monday that it has won an 86 billion won ($71 million) deal from a European company to build two petrochemicals (PC) carriers. Under the deal, Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co., a shipbuilding unit of Korea Shipbuilding, will start constructing the ships in November and deliver them to the buyers from the second half of 2021, Korea Shipbuilding said in an e-mailed statement. The deal has an option to build an additional PC carrier. So far thi

Chairman sells all shares to Cho Hyun-bum, whose legal trouble lingers

Hyunda Motor became the best-selling car maker in Vietnam during the first half of this year, surpassing Toyota by a slight margin. The South Korean automaker sold 25,358 units during the first six months of 2020, according to data from Hyundai and the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, with its Japanese rival trailing by 181 units. Hyundai cars accounted for 21.3 percent of the market share, up 2.6 percentage points from the same time last year. It marks the first time the

Hyundai Motor Co.'s new Grandeur sedan is likely to see its sales top 100,000 units this month, eight months after its launch in the domestic market, industry sources said Sunday. Hyundai Motor launched the face-lifted Grandeur in November last year and aimed to sell 110,000 units in the domestic market this year. According to the sources, Hyundai has sold 90,000 new Grandeur sedans through June this year since its launch. The new Grandeur has been the bestselling model in the domestic marke

After a German court ruled that Tesla’s advertisement on the capabilities of its autonomous driving system is “misleading,” a civic group in South Korea on Friday raised concerns and urged authorities here to inspect the firm. In a statement, Citizens United for Consumer Sovereignty, a nonprofit organization, urged the US-based automaker to withdraw its advertisement, which it claimed is exaggerated to misinform consumers as if Tesla cars can fully drive on their own. On Tu

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Friday it has ordered a recall of 34,268 vehicles -- sold by Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, Renault Samsung Motors, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz Korea, Hanbul Motors and BMW Korea -- for faulty components.  The defective components found in 23 models sold by the seven carmakers include faulty air bag in Hyundai Motor’s Avante, loose nut for generator inside Carnival, worn-out gearshift for Soul EV and oil leak in Renault Samsung’s M

South Korean low-cost carrier Eastar Jet’s unionized workers on Friday blamed Jeju Air and the government for the botched acquisition plan of its rival. The workers’ union argued that the government “neglected” the situation for three months, until the aviation industry’s economic situation severely deteriorated. “The government should actively step up, since the Moon Jae-in government and the ruling party cannot escape responsibility for the economic impac

Air Busan Co., the budget carrier unit of Asiana Airlines Inc., said Friday it has resumed flights to China as it obtained quarantine approval from the country. Air Busan is offering one flight per week on the Incheon-Shenzhen route on Fridays, the company said in a statement. "The company is targeting to increase the number of flights on the route to Shenzhen depending on the Chinese authorities' guidance," the statement said. The company also aims to restart services on the Inche

Merger virtually thwarted although Jeju Air does not specify closing deal date

Mercedes-Benz Korea said Thursday it is set to unveil, for the first time here, four new models under the premium high-performance brand Mercedes-AMG at the AMG Speedway in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, Friday. 　　 “There has been a growing demand for high-performance vehicles, especially among younger customers. In order to address this demand, the AMG brand is introducing a variety of performance models including the first-ever engine family 35 along with the 45 and the 45 S models,”

Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's largest carmaker by sales, said Thursday it will recall more than 272,000 vehicles in the United States as the electrical socket in the dashboard can overheat and cause a fire. The latest recall affects the Elantra compact and Sonata midsize sedan produced between 2011 and 2012, and the Accent subcompact and the Veloster hatchback produced in 2012, a company spokesman said. The problem takes place when an air compressor used to inflate tires is plugged into t

Sales of electric vehicles have taken a hit globally as the coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll on the economy, a new report has revealed. According to data from market analyst company SNE Research, global sales of electric cars between January and May this year dropped by 20.3 percent to 710,000 units, compared to the same time last year. Due to the worsening impact of the pandemic in the US and Europe in particular, global sales of electric vehicles in May were down by 28.7 perc

The European Commission has again suspended the screening of Hyundai Heavy Industries’ acquisition of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, according to industry sources. Upon the suspension, the screening deadline, originally set for September, has been delayed and it is unlikely that the review will be completed within this year, according to industry watchers. The EU had previously suspended the screening twice as it had difficulty collecting screening data due to the coro

Renault Samsung Motors unveiled a revamped version of its midsized sedan SM6 on Wednesday, four years after it was launched.  The new SM6 has been upgraded by adopting a renewed powertrain to improve the driving performance, along with a new rear suspension and driving assistant function to offer driving comfort.  For the exterior, the automaker added new color options including silver, gray and red. The newly added dynamic turn-signal light has made the exterior more aesthetic

South Korean full-service carrier Korean Air has released a video featuring Korean Air CEO Cho Won-tae and some 30 employees disinfecting the inside of an airplane, the airline said Tuesday.  In a video titled “We are waiting for you,” which runs just over a minute and a half, Cho and the employees sanitize the interior of the plane by spraying disinfectant on shelves, monitors, safety belts, tables and lavatories. The disinfectant, called MD-125, is effective for seven days.