Renault Samsung Motors said Thursday it will export the first batch of 83 units of its sport utility vehicle XM3 manufactured at its Busan plant to Chile, pushing ahead with its overseas expansion. The automaker said the vehicles will be shipped on July 25 to be displayed at showrooms in the South American country, offering test drives for customers.  By the year-end, the company plans to export 57 more units to Chile. The five-seater XM3 was launched in March here, topping the local B-

Air Busan Co., the budget carrier unit of Asiana Airlines Inc., said Thursday it will resume flights to China next week upon quarantine approval from China. Air Busan plans to begin offering one flight per week on the Incheon-Shenzhen route on Fridays from July 17, 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. And it aims to restart services on the Incheon-Ningbo route

BMW Korea said Wednesday it plans to launch the plug-in hybrid sports sedan New 330e, with a greater electric range. With the addition of the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, the German automaker said it has completed its New 3 Series lineup. The BMW New 330e is equipped with 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that can create up to 292 horsepower and 42.8 kilogram-meters of torque. It accelerates to 100 kilometers per hour in 5.9 seconds. With the Xtraboost function, the car can s

Years after ‘dieselgate,’ German carmaker reclaims No. 3 imported brand spot

Hyundai Motor said Wednesday it will hire staff from abroad year-round by replacing its annual regular recruitment to boost workforce in the fields of future mobility. The move is intended to select talented workers more timely in line with the rapidly changing business environment in the auto industry. Recruitment areas this year include autonomous driving, power electronics, fuel cell, future energy, robotics, artificial intelligence, software and big data. The candidates are required have

Casting more doubt over the controversy-ridden merger of two budget carriers, Jeju Air reiterated its warning on Tuesday that it will cancel its acquisition contract if Eastar Jet fails to meet prerequisites by July 15. Jeju Air, South Korea’s largest low cost carrier by sales, released a statement that the company has “done its best” to close the acquisition deal since it signed the contract to acquire a 51.17 percent stake in rival LCC Eastar Jet for 54.5 billion won ($45 m

The heir apparent of Hyundai Motor Group met with the head of refinery-to-battery conglomerate SK Group on Tuesday to discuss cooperation in the electric vehicle (EV) business. Hyundai Motor Group Executive Vice Chairman Chung Euisun and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won discussed cooperation on next-generation EV battery technologies, power management chips, and the "battery-as-a-service (Baas)" platform, the automaker said in a statement. Baas is a breakthrough business model mainl

Global new orders of ships fell to a historic low in the first half of the year amid the coronavirus pandemic, industry sources said Tuesday. In the January-June period, global new shipbuilding orders totaled 5.75 million compensated gross tons (CGTs), or a total of 269 ships, according to data provided by global market researcher Clarkson Research Service. The tally marks the lowest since 1996, when the market tracker began to compile related data, and a 42 percent drop from the previous y

First batch of XCIENT fuel cell trucks exported to Switzerland

The Korea Automobile Journalists Association said Monday that it has selected German carmaker Audi’s luxury sedan the New Audi A4 as its car of the month. Every month, the association selects its best model among new vehicles and face-lifted versions that were launched within the past month, based on five criteria including exterior, interior design, practicality, safety and comfort features, product marketability and purchasing intent.  For July, the Lexus UX F Sport, which was la

Transport Minister Kim Hyun-mi met with executives of HDC Group, Aekyung Group and Eastar Jet on Friday to urge their air carrier merger deals, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.  Kim reportedly had discussions with HDC Group Chairman Chung Mong-kyu, Aekyung Group Vice Chairman Chae Hyung-seok and former Eastar Jet Group Chairman Lee Sang-jik and was briefed on the status of the respective merger deals. HDC Group, which owns midsized builder HDC Hyundai Deve

South Korean midsized builder HDC Hyundai Development Co. said Friday that it has received approval from Russian aviation authorities for HDC’s planned takeover of flag carrier Asiana Airlines, but added that renegotiation of the acquisition terms is still underway. Regarding the merger deal involving the air carrier, HDC had to receive approval from six of the nations that Asiana flies to as a prerequisite.  HDC had planned to complete the deal by the end of April after regulators

Amid the aggravating political sentiment between US and China over the imposition of Hong Kong‘s security law, South Korean conglomerates with overseas branches in Hong Kong can possibly seek to relocate their offices to different cities, a report said Friday.  On Thursday, US lawmakers unanimously approved new Hong Kong-related sanctions that would penalize banks which do business with Chinese officials, after the Chinese government imposed a security law that has been widely conde

Sales of imported vehicles in South Korea jumped 41 percent in June from a year earlier on tax cuts and new models, an industry association said Friday. The number of newly registered foreign vehicles rose to 27,350 units last month from 19,386 a year earlier, the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) said in a statement. "A reduction in individual consumption taxes and new model launches particularly by Audi Volkswagen Korea helped buoy the monthly sales,&quo

It’s been 18 years since Porsche released the Cayenne, its first sport utility vehicle, but skeptics still questioning the vehicle’s “Porsche DNA.” Undeterred, the carmaker has continued to bolster its SUV lineup, and sales show Porsche’s decision was right. Its SUV sales now double those of smaller sports cars in some markets, including the US. In Korea, the Cayenne is attributed as having set the pace for the popularity of premium SUVs. This year, the carma