A decision by unionized workers at Hyundai Motor to stage partial strikes is likely to further burden the South Korean automaker, which is suffering from sluggish overseas sales partly due to a diplomatic dispute between Seoul and Beijing.Calling for wage hikes and job security, union members of Hyundai Motor said they would stage a strike Thursday and Monday for two hours at 11:30 a.m., and at 8:20 p.m. by another group of workers on the afternoon shift. The automaker’s unionized workers have s

South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. stands to lose its No. 3 status in terms of market value to surging steelmaker POSCO due to stalling stock prices stemming from lackluster earnings, data showed Thursday.Hyundai Motor's market capitalization stood at 32.2 trillion won ($28.3 billion) as of Wednesday, compared with 29.6 trillion won for the country's leading steelmaker, according to the data by the Korea Exchange.The gap in the market cap of the two companies, which reached as high as

ULSAN -- Union members of Hyundai Motor Co. will go on partial strikes starting Thursday after failed labor talks with the management over wage hikes and job security.Union leaders said workers on the early shift will stage a strike for two hours beginning at 11:30 a.m. Workers of the following shift will walk out for two hours at 8:20 p.m. The strikes will be repeated Monday, they said.The unionists will also refuse weekend work shifts starting this week. This is the sixth consecutive year for

South Korea's auto parts businesses on Wednesday demanded the government give more leeway in terms of regulations on wages and working hours, claiming the industry is currently facing tough challenges at home and abroad.The Korea Auto Industries Cooperative Association, the Korea Academy of Motor Industry, and the Foundation of Korea Automotive Parts Industry Promotion released a joint statement, saying the government should lend support to help local firms currently struggling with falling expo

Genesis, an independent luxury brand spun off from Hyundai Motor Co., is taking root in the United States as a premium vehicle, having gained 13 percent of the market segment in one year, company officials said Wednesday.The new brand was formally launched in the US market in August 2016 with the G80, which has sold 17,206 units as of July this year. After sales of some 2,000 units in the first month of its launch, the model has maintained a monthly sales average of 1,000 so far.G90, made availa

South Korea's top auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis Co. said Tuesday it has built a plant capable of mass-producing parts for hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles in a bid to preempt the global market.The company said the factory, located inside its existing eco-friendly vehicle parts complex in the central city of Chungju, is slated to start test operations in September.The 70 billion-won ($62.2 million) plant has the capacity to produce 3,000 powertrain fuel-cell complete modules per year, which

South Korea became the world’s fifth-largest market for German automaker Mercedes-Benz in the first half of this year, backed by the brisk sales of its E Class and S Class sedans, the company said Monday.Korean customers purchased a total of 37,723 Mercedes-Benz vehicles during the first half of 2017, up by 54 percent compared with the same period last year, the carmaker’s Seoul branch said. E-Class Coupé (Mercedes-Benz)Last year, the country was the eighth-largest market for the German luxury c

Kia Motors‘ subcompact SUV Stonic released last month driving on roads near Seoul. (Hyundai Motor Group)Kia Motors, South Korea’s No. 2 automotive company, last month released Stonic, a subcompact sport utility vehicle priced from 18 million won ($16,200) in a bid to replace the best-selling Tivoli compact SUV made by SsangYong Motor with an affordable price tag.Reporters were given a chance to take the new B-segment SUV out for a 150 kilometer test drive back and forth between Mayfield Hotel in

Hyundai Motor Co. and its corporate cousin Kia Motors Corp. outpaced Ford Motor Co. to become the No. 2 hybrid automobile sellers in the United States in July, industry data showed Sunday.According to market tracker HybridCars.com, the two South Korean automakers sold 4,976 vehicles that make use of both an internal combustion engine and electric motor to get high fuel mileage. The total represents a 9 percent increase from 4,566 units sold in the previous month and more than a twofold surge com

SsangYong Motor Co., a local automaker, started selling its new G4 Rexton SUV on Wednesday, as it attempts to expand its lineup of off-road capable cars.The seven-seat vehicle is a longer version of the existing five-seat G4 Rexton released in April.The new G4 Rexton comes with a 2.2-liter diesel-powered engine and Mercedes-Benz's seven-speed automatic transmission, according to the company. This photo provided by SsangYong Motor Co. on Aug. 2, 2017, shows its seven-seat G4 Rexton SUV released i

South Korea's five carmakers saw their combined sales of subcompact sport-utility vehicles jump 55 percent in July from a month earlier on growing consumer demand.The five automakers -- Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp., GM Korea Co., Renault Samsung Motors Corp. and SsangYong Motor Co. -- sold a combined 11,627 vehicles last month, up sharply from 7,505 units tallied for June, according to sales figures provided by the companies. (Yonhap)The sharp gain appears mainly attributed to the release

Kia Motors Corp. said Tuesday its vehicle sales have fallen 5.6 percent last month from a year earlier largely hit by lower demand in China. The country's second-biggest carmaker by sales sold a total of 216,118 vehicles in July, down from 229,044 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Sharp sales declines in China continued to affect monthly results, the company said in a statement, citing political tensions between Seoul and Beijing over the deployment of the Terminal High Alti

Hyundai Motor Co. said Tuesday its sales fell 1.8 percent last month from a year earlier, hit by weakening overseas demand, particularly in the Chinese market. The country's biggest carmaker by sales sold a total of 333,180 vehicles in July, down from 339,417 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Declining demand from China continued to affect the company's monthly sales results amid a diplomatic row between Seoul and Beijing over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Are

Tesla's first mass market Model 3 sedans. (Tesla)Tesla, the US-based electric car maker, delivered the first 30 units of its mass market Model 3 sedans last week, with deliveries to Korean motorists expected to begin around the end of next year, the company said Tuesday.The time frame for deliveries to Korean drivers is based on Tesla’s schedule to start deliveries of Model 3 sedans that place the steering wheel on the left side in the second half of 2018 for Korea and other markets, an official

Gasoline-powered vehicles recovered domestic market share here in the first half of this year, on the back of weaker demand for diesel cars, industry data showed Tuesday. The number of new gasoline vehicles registered in the first half accounted for 50.2 percent, surpassing the 50 percent mark for the first time since 2013, when gasoline-powered vehicles posted 52.7 percent, according to data compiled by the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association. (Yonhap)In contrast, the market share of die