Hyundai Motor Group has seen an increase in its US sales for 11 consecutive months, the South Korean automaker’s US office said Friday.According to Hyundai Motor America, the Korean carmaker sold 64,200 units in June, about 2 percent rise from a year earlier. Sport utility vehicles led the uptrend, the company said, recording a 10 percent sales increase on-year and accounting for 53 percent of the total monthly sales. By type, 50 percent of SUV sales in the US last month was led by su

Hyundai Home Shopping will start running an around-the-clock TV channel in Australia next month, a first for a South Korean home shopping business even as an increasing number of its rivals are tapping overseas markets.After making an AU$45 million ($31.65 million) investment in December last year to establish ASN, the home shopping operator said it would launch Open Shop on Aug. 1 on Channel 75. To ensure high broadcasting standards, the company has partnered with Seven Network, Australia&rsquo

Hyundai Motor Group announced Wednesday that it had become the first company in the world to develop a technology called Continuously Variable Valve Duration, which will improve engine performance and fuel efficiency once the automaker begins mass-producing CVVD-equipped engines for use in Hyundai and Kia cars later this year. According to the company, CVVD technology enhances the function of the engine by optimizing the timing of the opening and closing of the valve at all four stages of its po

Kia Motors’ full-sized K7 sedan has been always compared to its competitor, the Grandeur, a same-class sedan from its sister company Hyundai Motor. And the rival Grandeur has always topped the sales rankings in the category, selling 46,790 units this year as of June, while K7 sold 12,652 units. Kia Motors’ latest K7 Premier has been face-lifted to bring the car “up to date,” the automaker said, but the changes were so extensive that it almost feels like new generatio

ABB FIA Formula E Championship, the world’s only electric-powered car race, will take place in Seoul in May next year, Formula E Korea said Tuesday. Dubbed Seoul E-Prix 2020, the championship’s 10th race in its sixth season will be held at Jamsil Sports Complex and on roads around the Olympic Park on May 3. Fourteen rounds will take place in 12 cities, finishing the race in London in July. Participating automotive firms include Audi, Jaguar, Nissan, DS, BMW, Mercedes-Benz a

South Korean food manufacturer Samyang Foods said Monday that its bestselling instant noodle Buldak Spicy Chicken Ramen recorded accumulated sales of 1 trillion won ($863 million), seven years after its launch. According to the company, the sales of its spicy chicken ramen brand shot up from 100 billion won in 2016 to 282 billion won as of last year.  Following the successful hit of the brand, the company developed and launched Carbo Buldak Spicy Chicken Ramen, which set another record

South Korean discount chain Homeplus said Monday that it has granted permanent employment status to 14,283 contract workers at its stores, who account for some 62 percent of all workers at Homeplus, Homeplus Stores and Homeplus Holdings.  The change means Homeplus employs only 1 percent of its workers, or 228 individuals, on a contract basis, according to the company.Homeplus said having 99 percent of its employees, or 22,900 individuals, hold full-time permanent status was a meaningful ste

For many, the main purpose of installing a surveillance camera is to prevent theft and strengthen security.But the closed-circuit TVs can now play a significant role beyond such a purpose, as the latest models connected with artificial intelligence software help retailers develop data-driven strategies and increase sales by using video-based analytics.According to Hanwha Techwin, a South Korean total security solutions provider that manufactures surveillance cameras for video analytic solutions

Since the 2015 launch of the Tivoli, SsangYong Motor’s bestselling compact sport utility vehicle has been especially popular among drivers who prefer a compact, stylish SUV -- one that is suitable for urban driving and has a more spacious trunk than a sedan.But after four years, the Very New Tivoli is here. This face-lifted version will appeal to drivers seeking a dynamic driving experience, a powerful engine and the chance to try out different driving modes. During the 170-kilometer test

Samsung Electronics has conducted its first inspection on human rights at its smartphone manufacturing plants in Vietnam, where health, safety and labor violation issues regarding female workers have been raised. According to the company’s recently released sustainability report 2019, Samsung said it had run on-site inspections, including interviews and document reviews, for Human Rights Impact Assessment from last year to earlier this year, as part of the procedure for due diligence

Global automotive companies are starting to heavily invest in autonomous driving, customized infotainment systems and sensor technology to improve driver assistance features. And it has become critical to secure talents for relevant technology development. Startup Autobahn, a Mercedes-Benz-backed open innovation platform for startups founded in 2016 under the German automotive group Daimler, sees that the automotive industry is now going through a “war of startup talents.”&ldquo

Lotte Food said Monday that it had launched a new brand of baby formula called Nubone in Vietnam and clinched a sales contract with Viet Australia for distribution there. Nubone is an export-only product aimed at children age 6 and under and will be sold exclusively in Vietnam.  The product has been manufactured through Lotte’s Syn-Biotics system, which adds both pro-biotics and pre-biotics to aid the baby’s digestion and growth, the company said.The products will be export

Kia Motor has unveiled its redone upper-midsized sedan K7 Premier, offering five different engine options, and began sales in Korea on Monday, according to officials.The latest version is the first face-lifted version since the launch of the K7 model in 2016. According to the automaker, the K7 Premier comes with five different engine options to satisfy diversified consumer needs: new G2.5 GDi, 3.0 gasoline, 2.4 hybrid, 2.2 diesel and 3.0 liquefied petroleum injected engines. Kia Motors&rsqu

US air carrier Delta Air Lines announced Thursday that it has acquired 4.3 percent of the shares of Hanjin KAL, the holding company of Korea’s largest air carrier Korean Air, in an apparent move to defend its joint venture and the ownership family’s management. Delta Air Lines said its indirect investment in the Korean air carrier demonstrates its commitment to the success of their joint venture and to customer benefits. It said it also aims to increase its equity stake to

Kia Motors entered the Indian market on Thursday with the unveiling of its compact sport utility vehicle Seltos. “Seltos is Kia Motors’ new global model, and we are very delighted to introduce Seltos for the first time here in India, a rising market for the automotive industry,” said Kia Motors President Park Han-woo during a ceremony at Gurgaon’s A Dot Convention Center in India on Thursday.  According to the automaker, Seltos stands out with its full light-emi

Hyundai Glovis, a supply chain management and logistics arm of Hyundai Motor Group, said Thursday it has established a subsidiary company for cargo transportation business in the United States.The company, Global Expedited Transportation, has been set up as a subsidiary of Hyundai Glovis America. It will directly operate cargo transportation between the West Coast and East Coast. The operations were managed on a consignment basis until now.  Hyundai Glovis said GET will find new partners an

For 29-year-old office worker surnamed Jang, buying a dress from a popular Instagram influencer who has some 4,000 followers was a money-losing proposition and regretful shopping experience. “Although the dress was not from a famous brand, it was around 200,000 won ($170). The seller said the dress is tailor-made, advertising it as a now-or-never deal to own a perfect-fit dress made with high-quality fabric,” said Jang. But when she received the product, the dress was diffe

South Korean flagship carrier Korean Air said Wednesday it has clinched a deal with Boeing to acquire 30 Boeing 787 aircraft at the Paris Air Show in an effort to modernize its aircraft.Korean Air has agreed to buy 20 new wide-body B787-10s and to lease 10 additional B787-9s, the company said in a statement. The deal approximately costs 11.5 trillion won ($9.7 billion), based on the price list. This marks the first large-scale purchase deal made by the new chief Cho Won-tae, who took office

Amid rebounding sedan sales in the South Korean market, Nissan Korea said it will launch a sixth-generation model of its bestselling midsized sedan, the Altima, here in July. According to the carmaker, the most distinctive aspect of the fully transformed Altima is its design.  With a sportier, more dynamic exterior design, Nissan said it had equipped the latest Altima with its award-winning Nissan Vmotion 2.0 design. In 2017, the Nissan Vmotion 2.0 was recognized as the best concept ca

Just days after a dramatic consensus with its labor union ended a year of confrontation and strikes, Renault Samsung unveiled a facelifted version of the QM6, the automaker’s most popular midsized sport utility vehicle, in Seoul on Tuesday.The QM6 is the automaker’s most trusted model, accounting for 61.2 percent of the country’s midsized gasoline SUV sales from September of 2017 to April this year, selling 41,191 vehicles.With the upgraded model, which is also the country&rsqu