After a sweeping election victory by the Democratic Party of Korea, leaders of municipalities are likely to push ahead with an administrative drive to ditch old diesel cars and boost electric vehicles as part of their campaign pledges.Re-elected Seoul city major Park Won-soon vowed during his campaign that he would classify vehicles in five different groups based on the amount of emissions and make an alternative-day-no-driving system mandatory.　Park said incentives would be given to vehicles em

Hyundai Motor has become a global automotive sponsor for La Liga’s leading football club Atletico Madrid, stepping up sports marketing efforts in Europe, the company said Thursday.The sponsorship deal was announced just days after the automaker revealed its partnership with Chelsea FC.Until 2021, Hyundai’s logo will appear on the sleeve of the football club’s uniform, alongside advertising boards in its stadium. Hyundai will also be given the rights to display its vehicles at Atletico Madrid’s h

Hyundai heir in China amid carmaker struggling to recover sales

Hyundai Motor is poised to become a leading automaker in motorsports, sweeping eight wins at the World Rally Championship and World Touring Car Cup so far this year, the company said Tuesday. The latest victory scored by Thierry Neuville, driver of Hyundai WRC team, came last week at the seventh round of the 2018 WRC in Italy.“The rally in Italy was fantastic. We were able to reap a notable record thanks to Hyundai’s outstanding i20 rally car and team members,” said Michele Nandan, the head to H

Hyundai Motor, South Korea’s leading automaker, has become an official global automotive partner of top Premier League Chelsea football club, the company said Tuesday. Hyundai’s logo will appear on advertising boards in the stadium, and Hyundai’s vehicles displayed at the club’s home stadium Stamford Bridge.Chelsea players will also wear jerseys with Hyundai’s logo embedded on the left sleeve for the next four years starting August this year, when the new season begins, the company said. (from l

Amid instabilities surrounding oil-exporting countries, gas prices in Korea have risen for eight weeks in a row and averaged 1,610 won ($1.50) per liter as of Monday, industry figures showed.According to gas price information provider Opinet, gas prices in Korea averaged 1,610 won per liter at the start of the week, retaining the highest rate since December 2014.At stations across Seoul, the average cost of gas surged to 1,696 won, up 0.19 percent from the previous day. The most expensive statio

Hyundai Mobis has started a software training program at a cost of 1.4 billion won ($1.2 million) at its research center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, to beef up its automotive software professionals by five times by 2025, according to the firm on Sunday.The auto parts unit of Hyundai Motor Group said it has widened the role of its research and development centers in India and Vietnam to serve as a global base to analyze information collected by the firm’s self-developed automated vehicle.“In th

BUSAN -- GM Korea, the local unit of the US auto giant, said Thursday it expects to make a turnaround next year on newly launched cars centered on sport utility vehicles.“I’m confident to say that we have landed on significant agreement with all our stakeholders that enables us to move forward. I’d like to think that we can try to get to profitability as soon as next year,” GM Korea chief Kaher Kazem said during a meeting with reporters at the Busan motor show. GM Korea CEO Kaher Kazem answers q

BUSAN -- Major imported car makers are showcasing their green car lineups and future eco-friendly vehicle plans at the ninth Busan International Motor Show that opens this week, aiming at the steadily growing local market.Highlighting the event was the world premiere by Mercedes-Benz Korea, which unveiled the plug-in hybrid version of its top selling 10th generation E-class, named the new E 300 e.The automaker also revealed the concept EQA, the first compact-sized electric vehicle under the EQ E

Kia unveils new Niro EV interior design

With one of the biggest auto industry events in South Korea kicking off this week, the spotlight of the 2018 Busan International Motor Show will be on the world premiere of Mercedes-Benz’s EQ model and Hyundai Motors’ large sport utility vehicle concept.Held under the slogan “Beyond Innovation, Into the Future” the 10-day event opens Friday and runs through June 17 in the southeastern port city of Busan, with some 15 automakers displaying over 200 models, event organizer Busan Exhibition & Conve

Militant labor union hinders efforts for fear of leveled down average wage

South Korean textile giant Hyosung officially launched a holding group and four affiliates on Friday to improve transparency in management and corporate governance, officials said Sunday.In the first major change in decades, the textile company will have four operations under a control tower, Hyosung Corp. The CEO post of the holding company will be shared by Hyosung Chairman Cho Hyun-joon and President Kim Kyu-young. President Cho Hyun-sang, the chairman’s younger brother, was named boardroom m

The South Korean government is still closely working with GM on how to revive its Korean unit as the US carmaker is set to shut down one of its four plants in Asia's fourth-largest economy, Seoul's commerce minister has said.The Detroit-based company announced a restructuring plan for GM Korea in February, including the shutdown of a plant in Gunsan, southern South Korea.After wage concessions with GM Korea's labor union and intense negotiations with the Korean government, GM and the state-run K

BMW Korea said Monday it would continue its efforts in sustaining growth and seeking co-prosperity with the community. From social responsibility programs to direct investment, the local branch of the German carmaker will inject 1 trillion won ($927.2 million) and buy 10 trillion won worth of auto parts from local partners. Trainees of Ausbildung, the German educational program nurturing technical professionals, pose in this undated photo. BMW Korea sponsors the vocational training program.(BMW