Hyundai, armed with its all-new i20 world rally car, is challenging Volkswagen for championship of the 2016 WRC

GM Korea said Thursday it formed a partnership with SOCAR, a car-sharing service company, as part of its marketing efforts. With the partnership, the carmaker will provide more than 700 GM cars including its Chevrolet Spark minicars to SOCAR. (GM Korea)

Hankook Tire, Korea’s largest tire maker, is sponsoring Doosan Bears, the 2015 Korean league champion, for the 2016 season. Through the sponsorship, the company aims to promote its brand as the top tire manufacturer in Korea. Doosan Bears’ players will wear uniforms with Hankook Tire logos, while Jamsil Stadium, Doosan’s home ground, will display Hankook Tire advertisements. (Hankook Tire)

Hyundai Motor launches the sport version of its new Avante as part of efforts to strengthen its best-selling compact sedan product lineup. The new Avante Sport, powered by a 1.6-liter T-GDi four-cylinder engine, produces 201 horsepower. Besides its seven-speed DCT dual-clutch transmission, the variant also looks sportier. Prices start from 21 million won ($18,412). (Hyundai Motor)

When it comes to corporate social responsibility, German luxury carmaker BMW outshines other foreign automakers in Korea in terms of donations and the quality of its CSR projects, according to companies' regulatory filings over the past five years.The company data showed cumulative donations of the carmaker between 2011 and 2015 reached up to 18.3 billion won ($16 million), which is higher than the 4.5 billion won of its arch rival Mercedes-Benz over the same period. Torben Karasek, chief financ

Chinese consumers are less loyal to Hyundai cars than most other auto brands, according to the latest report of U.S. consulting firm McKinsey & Company.A survey on 3,500 Chinese consumers in March showed that 43 percent of those who owned a Korean brand car wanted to switch to a more upscale brand. That was the highest percentage following those owning French cars. (Yonhap)McKinsey said that those with German cars were the most loyal to the brands they had.   “Korean brands are not yet viewed as

Heir apparent of Hyundai Motor Group pushes projects for smart mobility to expand presence

GM Korea, the local unit of U.S. carmaker General Motors, said Thursday that it has received more than 2,000 preorders for the all-new Malibu midsize sedan in just a day after its official debut here.The figure is much larger than other competing models whose preorders usually stand at a daily average of around 400, experts say. GM Korea Malibu midsize sedan (Yonhap)During an unveiling event on Wednesday, when it started receiving preorders, GM Korea did not elaborate on any sales target for the

GM Korea, the Korean unit of General Motors, unveiled its all-new Malibu on Wednesday, with the goal of becoming a game changer in the midsize sedan market. Hyundai and Kia have dominated the sedan market in Korea, but the newly-launched SM6 of Renault Samsung is changing the landscape of the market competition. During the launch at Gocheok Sky Dome, the automaker expressed confidence in overtaking the sedans of three local rivals -- Hyundai’s Sonata, Renault Samsung’s SM6 and Kia Motors’ K5.  G

In contrast with Hyundai Motor, its sister automaker Kia Motors saw its operating profit jump 23.8 percent to 633.6 billion won ($554 million) in the first quarter from the same period last year, boosted by sales in its sport utility vehicle lineup, according to the company Wednesday. Hyundai Motor’s operating profit fell 15.5 percent to 1.34 trillion won on-year in the first quarter, hit by sales drop in China. Kia’s net profit also increased 4.6 percent to 944.6 billion won during the January-

Kia Motors, Korea's second-largest automaker, said Wednesday that its first-quarter net profit increased 4.6 percent from a year earlier, driven by strong demand for its SUVs and newly-launched models.Net income came to 944.6 billion won ($822.7 million) during the January-March period compared with a profit of 903.2 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. (Yonhap)Operating income also jumped 23.8 percent on-year to 633.6 billion won and sales rose 13.2 percent to 12

Hyundai Motor Group on Tuesday categorically denied market speculation that it may be interested in buying Hyundai Merchant Marine and Hyundai Heavy Industries, to put the two ailing firms under its umbrella. The automaker has been mentioned in the market as a potential candidate to take over the debt-ridden firms. “The company plans to concentrate on having a competitive edge in the auto sector. We have nothing to do with and have no interest in the shipbuilding and shipping areas,” Yonhap News

Chairman’s firm and consistent focus on product quality and overseas production creates world’s fast growing auto giant

Hyundai Motor, the nation’s top automaker, said Tuesday that its first-quarter net profit dropped 10.8 percent from a year earlier, affected by weak demand from emerging markets. In a regulatory filing, the automaker reported a net profit of 1.77 trillion won ($1.54 billion) for the January-March period, down from a profit of 1.98 trillion won tallied a year earlier. Hyundai Motor Group headquarters in Seoul (Yonhap)Operating profit also plunged 15.5 percent on-year to 1.34 trillion won over the