The Korea Herald

Kim Yon-se

안녕하세요 Kim Yon-se 기자입니다.

Articles by Kim Yon-se

Equus wins U.S. value award

TransportDec 9, 2012

Hyundai Motor’s Equus took first place in the luxury car segment in the 16th annual Strategic Vision Total Value Awards in the United States.“Our flagship sedan Equus beat out competitors such as the Mercedes-Benz CLS, the Audi A8 and the Jaguar XJ,” the company said in a statement Sunday.While Strategic Vision’s Total Value Index reflects all aspects of perceived value ― from quality, to economics to customer appeal ― the Equus also received the award for Best Model and the automaker’s Sonata s
Renault Samsung mulls sale of factory land

IndustryDec 6, 2012

Renault Samsung Motors is considering selling some of the land at its second manufacturing plant site in Busan, company officials said Thursday.The land sale plan allegedly comes as part of the carmaker’s efforts to overcome a lackluster sales performance.Though Renault Samsung had pushed ahead with building the second plant, it has yet to launch the construction process amid the situation that its sales in the local market dropped more than 30 percent on a year-on-year basis.A company executive
Antitrust fines hit record in 2012

IndustryDec 6, 2012

The Fair Trade Commission has levied fines on enterprises totaling 913.8 billion won ($846.1 million) so far this year, an all-time high on a yearly basis.The collective figure for this year far surpasses the antitrust regulator’s fines of 347.3 billion won on rule-violators in 2011 and 507.4 billion won in 2010.During the first and second year of the Lee Myung-bak administration, the figure was 131.1 billion won and 110.8 billion won, respectively, under the president’s business-friendly polici
Samsung promotes heir-apparent to vice chairman

IndustryDec 5, 2012

Samsung Group said it promoted Samsung Electronics chief operating officer Lee Jay-yong to vice chairman of the group’s flagship in its yearly personnel reshuffle of group CEOs on Wednesday.The promotion of Lee, the only son of Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee, has widely been predicted in the market amid the ongoing power transition process in the nation’s largest conglomerate. In a statement, the group said the 44-year-old nominee “has made great contributions to the sectors of smartph
Korea, U.S. to hold business talks this week

IndustryDec 3, 2012

A delegation composed of 14 government and business leaders will hold talks with their U.S. counterparts for bilateral economic cooperation in Washington this week, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said Monday.The Korean leaders included Knowledge Economy Minister Hong Suk-woo, KCCI chairman Sohn Kyung-shik, and Samsung Electronics vice chairman Kang Ho-moon.They are scheduled to visit Atlanta, Georgia and Washington, D.C. between Dec. 4-8. This will mark the first time for the two cou
Tax cut helps car sales recover

IndustryDec 3, 2012

Korea’s five major automakers including Hyundai Motor sold 778,187 vehicles at home and abroad last month, posting a 8.9 percent on-year increase despite the global economic slowdown.Hyundai Motor said Monday that its vehicle sales at home and abroad logged 420,365 units in November, up 11.9 percent from a year earlier.The largest carmaker in Korea sold 61,608 units in the local market and 358,757 units in the overseas market, reporting 12.6 percent and 11.8 percent on-year growth, respectively.
Rolls-Royce cars plans expansion as wealth spreads

TransportDec 2, 2012

Rolls-Royce, the ultra-luxury car brand owned by Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, plans to increase outlets by 14 percent within five years as it chases growing numbers of wealthy customers. Rolls-Royce targets expanding the number of dealers to 120 from 105 to reach millionaires in markets like Chile, Thailand and Vietnam. Unfazed by Europe’s debt crisis, the Goodwood, England-based carmaker expects the updated version of its $380,000 Phantom sedan will help it reach a second consecutive sales rec
Hyundai Motor grapples to satisfy BRIC tastes

TransportDec 2, 2012

Hyundai Motor is considering diversifying its localized model lineup in a bid to secure its position in the fast growing BRIC market, company officials said.Over the past several years, the company has prioritized expanding the production capacity of its assembly lines in China, Russia and India.Along with the completion of its Brazilian factory this year, Hyundai Motor plans to more profoundly reflect locals’ design tastes and customer needs in the four countries.The company is reportedly consi
Toyota leads Japanese auto firms in cutting China output

TransportDec 2, 2012

Toyota Motor Corp. production in China fell the most in at least a decade, leading a slump for Japanese automakers, after a sovereignty dispute over uninhabited islets triggered demonstrations and deterred buyers. Japan’s biggest carmaker said today China output in October tumbled 61 percent to 30,591 units in October. Nissan Motor Co. reported production fell 44 percent last month, the biggest decline based on company data stretching back to 2009, and Honda Motor Co. said output tumbled 54 perc
Lee urges rise to new challenge

IndustryNov 30, 2012

Samsung chairman calls for fresh challengeGroup celebrates Lee’s 25-year leadership Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee pledged Friday to push for another round of innovation at Samsung Group.“I vowed to create a new history for Samsung. As there are still long ways to go, we have to launch fresh challenges,” he said in a video message delivered to his staff during the group’s ceremony to celebrate Lee’s 25th anniversary as chairman.“By conducting another innovative mode in the group, let’s
Mercedes-Benz Korea CEO dies in Germany

IndustryNov 30, 2012

Mercedes-Benz Korea CEO Thomas Urbach died on Thursday in Germany, company spokespeople said Friday.The company did not reveal the cause of death of the 50-year-old German businessman, but Yonhap News, quoting unnamed industry sources, reported that the luxury car chief, who had suffered from depression for years, killed himself.Urbach was in Germany to visit the automaker’s headquarters in Stuttgart.The CEO had been scheduled to hold a press conference on Dec. 11 in Seoul to make public the Kor
Korea seizes 2 Chinese boats over illegal fishing

Social affairsNov 29, 2012

Two Chinese fishing boats were seized near the southern island of Jeju on Thursday on suspicions of poaching in South Korean waters, maritime police said.The Jeju Coast Guard said it seized the two boats in waters some 78 kilometers northwest of the island at around 3:30 p.m. for violating South Korea's exclusive economic zones and fishing illegally.The sailors are also suspected of falsifying their daily logs, the police said. A crewman of one boat wrote it caught 570 kilograms for the day thou
Kia to get tax benefits in Georgia State

IndustryNov 29, 2012

The U.S. state of Georgia will provide Kia Motors with tax benefits for the coming 16 years, in reflection of the carmaker’s major contribution to the regional economy, company officials said on Thursday.Kia Motors, which operates manufacturing plants in West Point, Georgia, recently signed a pact on mutual investment with five municipal governments in the state.The pact features reduction and exemption of a variety of taxes between 2013 and 2029 and fiscal support from the local governments for
Hyundai Motor’s contract workers plan one-day strike

IndustryNov 28, 2012

A group of non-regular employees at Hyundai Motor’s factories nationwide said they will go on partial strike on Thursday, demanding job security.Depending on coming situations involving concessions from management, their protest could develop into a full-fledged walkout, according to a statement from the non-regular workers’ union.While participants are likely to include a large portion of 13,000 contract workers at the carmaker’s plants in Ulsan, Asan and Jeonju, they plan to call on the manage
Korean handsets to capture 30% of market

IndustryNov 28, 2012

Korea’s mobile phone manufacturers are expected to capture 30 percent of the global market for the first time in history this year, brokerage industry data showed Wednesday.Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are anticipated to post market shares of 26.4 percent and 3.7 percent, respectively, for a collective 30.1 percent share of handset sales globally, Samsung Securities said in a report.The brokerage house predicted that the two companies’ 2012 sales would reach 440 million and 56 million