An alliance led by an estranged sister of the Korean Air chairman said Wednesday it has raised its stake in the carrier's parent Hanjin KAL Corp. to over 45 percent in the latest attempt to control airline conglomerate Hanjin Group. The move came more than two months after Chairman Cho Won-tae's elder sister Hyun-ah -- known for her "nut rage" incident in 2014 -- failed to dethrone the chairman of Korean Air Lines Co. and Hanjin Group in a family feud. The three-party alliance that

South Korean air carriers that had planned to resume flights to the US this month amid the slow spread of COVID-19 are cautious and taking a “wait and see” approach due to growing protests in the US over the death of an African American man in police custody, according to industry sources Tuesday.  Protests against the death of George Floyd and police brutality have spread to over 100 cities since last week.  The country’s flag carrier Korean Air’s flight dep

Volvo Truck Korea said Tuesday that Park Kang-seok, who is in charge of its aftermarket business as an executive director, has been appointed its new CEO.  Park joined Volvo Truck Korea’s service division in 2006 and has led its service and retail network in Gyeongsang Province since 2014.  He has contributed to increasing competitiveness of the company’s core cargo business and rejoined the aftermarket business division last year to offer a differentiated service for cu

South Korea's vehicle sales plunged 36 percent last month from a year earlier as the new coronavirus outbreak continued to dent demand for cars amid the coronavirus pandemic, with overseas sales hit particularly hard, industry data showed Monday. The country's five carmakers -- Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp., GM Korea Co., Renault Samsung Motors Corp. and SsangYong Motor Co. -- sold a combined 423,416 vehicles in May, down from 665,136 units a year ago, according to data from the companie

Hanjin KAL Corp., the parent firm of Korean Air Lines Co., said Monday it will issue 300 billion won ($240 million) worth of bonds with warrant (BWs), mainly to participate in the airline's planned rights issue. Hanjin KAL held a board meeting to agree to issue the BWs on July 3, with a maturity of three years, to take part in Korean Air's upcoming recapitalization worth 1 trillion won, planned for late July, the company said in a statement. The holders of BWs will have the right to buy a ce

Automaker sells 24,778 vehicles despite virus woes

SsangYong Motor said Monday it has sold an after sales service center located in Guro-gu in Seoul for 180 billion won ($146 million), as part of its efforts to improve its fiscal health.  The automaker said by selling noncore assets, it will continue to secure liquidity and focus on increasing competitiveness for product development.  In the first quarter this year, its net loss expanded to 193.5 billion won over the economic impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. Its operating loss came

Volvo Cars Korea said Monday that it has introduced a lifetime auto parts warranty for customers -- the first such guarantee by a carmaker here -- as part of its efforts to improve customer services. The service will allow customers to receive repairs on auto parts that have been changed at its official after sales service center, regardless of the number of times they have received the service and how long they have had the car. Those who have changed auto parts after June 1 and have agree

Hyundai Motor Group said Sunday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with photovoltaic solar cells manufacturer Hanwha Q Cells for energy storage systems to use recyclable batteries from electric vehicles.  The two firms held an MOU signing ceremony on Friday, which was attended by Hyundai Motor Group President and head of Strategy and Technology Division Chi Young-cho and Hanwha Q Cells President Kim Hee-chul attended.  Amid the expanding ratio of renewable energy use such a

Korean Air said Friday that it will launch a mobile application service for passengers to check whether their baggage is safely loaded. The service will be provided for passengers on international flights from Incheon International Airport starting June 1. The app prevents errors in loading of the luggage by comparing the barcode information of the baggage transferred during check-in with the scan information onboard an aircraft, the firm said. It is available to any Skypass member who inst

Hyundai partners with Sony Pictures

Creditors of Korean Air Lines Co. have demanded the cash-strapped airline raise capital of 2 trillion won ($1.62 billion) by end of the next year in return for fresh financial support, officials familiar with the issue said Thursday. The Korea Development Bank (KDB) and the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Exim Bank) recently signed an agreement with South Korea's biggest national flag carrier to extend 1.2 trillion won in new liquidity to help the company hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. Th

INCHEON -- BMW Korea unveiled revamped models of the 5 and 6 series sedans on Wednesday, holding the first world premiere event in the country as a foreign carmaker, which was also BMW Group’s first official event since the COVID-19 pandemic. The carmaker displayed three new versions of the 5 Series and the 6 Series Gran Turismo: BMW New 523d, BMW New 530e and BMW New 640i xDrive. The 5 Series will be presented with a lineup of six gasoline and diesel engine types, including 4-cylinde

Auto parts manufacturer to pursue 2,000 R&D projects

Kia Motors’ European subsidiary said Wednesday it plans to launch a micro-size electric vehicle that can replace public transportation amid increased preference for use of private vehicles following the COVID-19 pandemic. “People want to feel safe today. We saw that very clearly from a survey that was done after the coronavirus outbreak in China. People started shifting from public transport to private vehicles. They safer in their own car compared to public transport,” KIA M