Hana Financial Group chairman Kim Seung-yu raised the possibility on Wednesday that the group’s preliminary deal with Lone Star Funds to trade shares of Korea Exchange Bank could fall apart.If financial regulators do not finalize their stance on whether to approve or reject the Hana-Lone Star deal by the end of February, there is a high possibility that the U.S. fund will drop out of the contract, Kim told reporters.Under the scenario, Lone Star may file a suit against financial regulators, he s

The nation’s import car industry saw its monthly sales fall for the first time in 28 months in December 2011.According to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association, foreign carmakers reported combined sales of 7,879 units last December, down from 8,294 units a year earlier.The year-on-year drop in sales was the first since the figure stood at 3,612 units in August 2009, compared with 4,894 units in August 2008.In addition, the figure of 7,879 is quite low compared to the 9,230

KB Financial to seek M&As if necessary; Eximbank to push for bank name changeKDB Financial Group chairman Kang Man-soo and Woori Financial Group chairman Lee Pal-seung have clarified their resolve to privatize the state-funded groups.In his New Year message to KDB Financial staff, Kang said the group will “expand global networks” to become a leading bank in Asia and “revitalize the plan to sell shares” held by the government.This year’s business policy of KDB Financial is drawing wide interest ―

The Chung Mong-koo Foundation has named Yoo Young-hak, a former health vice minister, as the new chairman.Starting next month, the 56-year-old chairman will lead the foundation to carry out social activities for the foundation, which was funded by Hyundai Motor Group.Yoo graduated from Gyeongbuk High School, then Korea University and the University of California, Berkeley.He had mostly served in the government as a public official since 1979.The Chung Mong-koo Foundation, formerly Haevichi Found

Group’s R&D investment to focus on launching more hybrid modelsHyundai Motor Group has set a record-high budget with its 2012 investment in two major sectors ― facilities and research & development.The automotive group said Thursday that its investment target for next year comes to 14.1 trillion won ($12.3 billion), up 15.6 percent from its 2011 investment.Of the 14.1 trillion won investment, 5.1 trillion won will be used for the R&D sector and the remaining 9 trillion won will be allocated to f

Hyundai Motor Group will establish an automotive research institute at the Seoul campus of Hanyang University.The business group said Wednesday that it has signed a contract with the university to build a research center for developing futuristic cars.The two sides will break ground for the establishment of the center during the first half of 2012, Hyundai Motor said in a statement.By offering students and researchers high-end facilities, the two sides hope to foster specialists to take on core

The vision of Prudential of Korea is to become the most trusted company. Instead of becoming the biggest or most profitable company, it aims to be an honest and ethical company trusted by customers.The life insurance firm believes that the way it can achieve the vision is by keeping the promise it makes to its customers, which is delivery of insurance benefits.POK is committed to fulfilling the mission of life insurance, which is delivering financial security and peace of mind.Since its inceptio

Toyota Motor Corp. said its vehicle sales may rise the most in at least 12 years in 2012 as Asia’s biggest carmaker recovers from production disruptions caused by Japan’s March earthquake and Thailand’s record flooding.The maker of Prius hybrid cars may boost global deliveries 20 percent to 8.48 million vehicles from an estimated 7.05 million in 2011, it said in a statement today. The forecast excludes Toyota’s Hino Motors Ltd. and Daihatsu Motor Co. units.Toyota, poised to lose its crown as the

Hyundai-Kia’s exports to surpass 2m units; import car sales to top 100,000 units in 2011The overall automotive industry of Korea posted robust sales growth in 2011, despite global economic woes in the wake of the eurozone debt crisis.Korean companies, such as Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, saw exports surge and foreign companies, including BMW and Mercedes-Benz, expanded their presence in the local market.As for German and Japanese brands, Hyundai and its affiliate Kia have been recognized as pow