A diplomat who played a key role in negotiations for Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement will likely take the post of an executive director at Samsung Electronics.Kim Won-kyoung, a councilor of the Korean Embassy in the United States, tendered his resignation last weekend, according to diplomatic sources.The 45-year-old figure has reportedly been scouted by Samsung Electronics to hold the post of an executive director at the chipmaker’s U.S. sales corporation.Kim worked as the general director of th

General Motors Co., with renewed verve as the world’s biggest automaker, will be in the spotlight at the Detroit auto show next week taking on BMW and its popular 3-Series line with a new compact Cadillac. The new model represents Chief Executive Officer Dan Akerson’s strategy for gaining ground in the compact-luxury segment. GM is trying to barge into the market for small, upscale cars, an important entryway for new customers that is dominated by German vehicles such as the 3-Series and the Mer

Audi will add models to feed U.S. passion for sedans and sport-utility vehicles and gain ground on market leaders Daimler AG and BMW.Audi will use the Detroit motor show next week to unveil a concept “Vail” version of the compact Q3 SUV for the U.S. market and plans to build a sedan version of the A3 hatchback after the newest model comes to market this year, CEO Rupert Stadler said in an interview. U.S. growth is critical to efforts by Audi, the top seller in western Europe and China, to replac

KDB Financial Group chairman Kang Man-soo unveiled his concrete plan to launch the group’s privatization process again this year.At a news conference on Thursday, Kang said the state-run financial group will sell 10 percent of the shares held by the government by the end of 2012.He said the stake sale will be carried out through the group’s planned listing, or pushing for initial public offering, on the stock market.Following similar remarks by chief financial regulator Kim Seok-dong a day befor