BMW Korea said Monday it would continue its efforts in sustaining growth and seeking co-prosperity with the community. From social responsibility programs to direct investment, the local branch of the German carmaker will inject 1 trillion won ($927.2 million) and buy 10 trillion won worth of auto parts from local partners. Trainees of Ausbildung, the German educational program nurturing technical professionals, pose in this undated photo. BMW Korea sponsors the vocational training program.(BMW

Hyundai Mobis, an auto parts maker under Hyundai Motor Group, was picked as one of top suppliers to US carmaker GM for the first time since their partnership has begun in 2010, the company said Tuesday. Hyundai Mobis` test driving track in Seosan (Hyundai Mobis)The Korean company has been delivering core auto components including integrated center stacks to GM. The accumulated value of products supplied to the US carmaker has totaled $1.1 billion, it said.Named the supplier of the year by the De

A non-profit foundation run by Samsung has decided not to run scholarship programs designed to support academic works of journalists here, officials said Tuesday.The Samsung Press Foundation will discontinue its four major projects including the Samsung Press Award, training courses overseas and publications by journalists, to “re-establish its role in the changing media environment.“The decision came amid the foundation facing rumors of providing special offers to a limited group of journalists

SEOGWIPO, Jeju -- The New GLC 350 e 4MATIC, the first Mercedes-Benz SUV under the EQ brand, has landed in Korea aiming to get a foothold in the market’s fast-growing green sector. Despite its green ambition, the plug-in hybrid SUV disappoints in regard to its driving range of a maximum of 15 kilometers on pure electric power. However, what the vehicle really wants to prove is its performance, rather than its greenness, through the latest hybrid technology that completes its dynamic yet reliable

For those looking for a sports coupe, there are two major factors to consider before making a decision. Should one consider the vehicle’s unique design or its dynamic performance? Infiniti’s newly launched sports coupe is the answer to both, the luxury carmaker said.“The all-new-400-horsepower coupe not only stimulates drivers’ speeding instinct but also embodies Infiniti’s design philosophy of powerful elegance, making graceful racing possible,” said the company’s importer and distributor in Se

South Korean biopharma company Samsung BioLogics has won approval from the US Food and Drug Administration for bio drugs manufactured from its second plant in Songdo, west of Seoul, the company said Thursday.(Yonhap)Winning the FDA’s approval means that the company can sell bio drugs manufactured from its second plant in the United States, according to the company. It also indicates that the firm has gotten the greenlight to manufacture a new bio product at the second factory, as companies have

BMW Group Korea, the local importer and distributor of the German luxury carmaker, said Thursday it has teamed up with the LPGA tour to hold a tournament in the southeastern port city of Busan next year. Kim Hyo-jun, chairman of BMW Group Korea (left), and Michael Whan, commissioner of the LPGA, pose during a signing ceremony of the local importer, which is hosting a tournament next year. (BMW Group Korea)Scheduled for October, the first event will be held at LPGA International Busan, the tour’s

Huh Chang-soo, chairman of GS Group, urged GS affiliates to find new business opportunities amid an evolving geopolitical landscape, at an annual forum designed to seek innovation in the retail-to-energy conglomerate, the group said Wednesday. Huh Chang-soo, chairman of GS Group“After an inter-Korean summit, the summit between leaders of North Korea and the United States is on the way, leading a change in the geopolitical landscape over the Korean Peninsula,” he said at the annual Value Creation

Putting the issues of the past behind, GM Korea said it was opening “a new chapter” by launching a refreshed and also slightly cheaper mini car Spark in Seoul on Wednesday. Kaher Kazem, CEO of GM Korea said that the company will launch 15 new or renovated models in the next five years as part of a comprehensive Chevrolet strategy. Starting with Spark, the company plans to unveil its compact SUV Equinox at the upcoming Busan Motor Show and will bring more models produced overseas to Korea to sati

Two months after proposing a grand reform plan on its corporate governance, Hyundai Motor Group, the nation’s second-largest chaebol, came with yet another unexpected choice Monday, ditching the plan it previously hailed as a pathway to modernize the 50-year-old conglomerate.And its crown prince, the chairman’s only son, vowed that he would come back with “an improved” version. What the company need now is “the speedy and drastic reform and change,” the automaker’s Vice Chairman Chung Eui-sun st

The crown prince of Hyundai Motor Group, the nation’s second-largest conglomerate, is in New York in an apparent move to convince foreign shareholders over the group’s corporate governance reform seeking a change of the hostile atmosphere against the plan.Hyundai Motor officials in Seoul confirmed on Friday that Vice Chairman Chung Eui-sun has left for a business trip to US. He was briefed over progresses made at Hyundai Cradle in Silicon Valley, a multinational startup incubator, the company sa

What with boisterous opposition from activist hedge fund Elliott, Hyundai Motor Group’s corporate restructuring scheme is dominating the attention of investors and business insiders.The accusation from Elliott and several other critics of Korea’s second-largest conglomerate is that Hyundai has devised a plan solely in the interest of the owner family, while the group argues that it is aimed to elevate the value of the company, and therefore the interests of the shareholders.So far, four proxy ad

Ending controversies in the course of its acquisition by a Chinese company, South Korean tiremaker Kumho Tire on Wednesday launched a new product for the first time in eight years. The nation’s second-largest tiremaker unveiled a premium comfort tire named the Majesty9 SOLUS TA91 at a launching ceremony attended by more than 350 dealers.  Kumho Tire Chairman Kim Jong-ho poses next to Majesty9 SOLUS TA91, a premium tire launched Wednesday in Seoul.(Kumho Tire)The product is the latest in its prem

Amid growing opposition against Hyundai Motor Group’s corporate restructuring plan, the state-run pension operator in South Korea found itself in a difficult position Wednesday, as it appears to have the final say on the fate of the carmaker.The National Pension Service is the second-largest shareholder, with a 9.82 percent stake in Hyundai Mobis, an auto parts maker at the center of the carmaker’s restructuring plan.The upcoming May 29 vote on Hyundai Mobis’ spinoff merger plan is a test for th

Among many factors concerning South Korea’s corporate world, there’s one particular case that businesses feel commonly sensitive about: activist hedge funds. Hedge funds use unconventional strategies of not only intervening in the company’s board and management, but also waging proxy battles and liquidating assets. They operate around the world, pushing companies with aggressive strategies in pursuit of greater returns.And South Korea appears to be the latest target for the “corporate hunters.”A

US hedge fund activist Elliott said Friday that it will vote against Hyundai Motor Group‘s corporate governance reform scheme, raising concerns over the fund agitating foreign shareholders who hold nearly half of the shares in the group’s affiliates ahead of a major vote planned later this month.The nation’s second-largest conglomerate plans to simplify its complex ownership structure. In March, the group said it will spin off Hyundai Mobis’ lucrative after-sales and module division and merge th

A war of words between the nation’s financial watchdog and Samsung BioLogics intensified Thursday over the legitimacy of authorities disclosing the biotech company’s alleged accounting fraud, further raising already heightened market fears.The Financial Supervisory Service found itself cornered, with officials at the upper echelon turning a cold shoulder, saying that its decision to reveal the content of a preliminary notice sent to Samsung has caused “market chaos.”On Ma

Hyundai Mobis hires ex-Continental engineer to bolster infotainment, connectivityBy Cho Chung-unSouth Korean auto component maker Hyundai Mobis has hired a former executive of Continental AG to strengthen its engineering capability in infotainment and connectivity, the company said Thursday.Carsten Weiss, a software expert, was named vice president at Hyundai Mobis to lead its in-vehicle infotainment software development division as of May 1, it added.Weiss is the latest foreign engineer recruit

The world of performance cars is moving toward electrification, and Mercedes-AMG, a high performance brand of German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz, hopes to take the lead.Tobias Moers, chairman of the board of management of Mercedes-AMG, said in a recent interview with The Korea Herald that the company has set a clear direction to head toward electrification ultimately. In the meantime, the company will focus on developing performance hybrids with high power batteries.“The future, especially in

South Korean auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis has started to produce instrument clusters with digital displays with an aim to generate future growth, the company said Wednesday.Making inroads into the global market for digital instruments, the auto component unit of Hyundai Motor Group, will supply 7-inch digital displays for the electric version of the Kona, a compact sport utility vehicle this month, it said in a statement.By 2020, the company also plans to produce 12.3-inch digital instrument c