Chief regulator shows confidence in attracting competitive bidderThe Public Fund Oversight Committee will put up the state-controlled Woori Financial Group for auction again on Monday.In a statement on Sunday, the PFOC said it would attract preliminary bidders for the nation’s largest financial group by July 27 after making official notification of the sale on April 30.The new sale project comes after financial authorities failed to attract a preferred bidder for Woori Financial several times be

Carmaker yet to launch K2 compact in Korea despite strong sales in ChinaThe K series of Kia Motors Corp. will likely be completed this year after the automaker unveiled the first model ― the K7 sedan ― in November 2009.Kia, which launched the K5 sedan in April 2010, is scheduled to fill the K line-up by unveiling the third and fourth models ― the K9 and K3 ― in May and later this year, respectively, according to company executives.“We plan to launch the K9 on May 2 and the timing of the K3 will

Following Hyundai Motor, affiliate Kia Motors reported all-time high quarterly earnings on the back of its robust vehicle sales in the overseas market.Kia said Friday that its operating profit reached 1.12 trillion won ($1 billion) during the first quarter of 2012, up 33.4 percent over the same period last year.The carmaker also saw its net profit climb by 26 percent to 1.2 trillion won. Its sales came to 11.7 trillion won.On a quarterly basis, the figures for the operating profit, net profit an

Korean carmaker to offer education program to 10,000 students in 15 nationsHyundai Motor Co., Korea’s largest carmaker, will offer a series of vocational education program for young jobseekers in 15 European countries for the next two years under its social contribution activities, company officials said Friday.The program, dubbed “Skills for the Future,” is designed to support employment of vocational school students aged between 15 and 18 years old in Europe, the company said.Hyundai’s oversea

Performance aided by emphasis on product-quality than mass productionHyundai Motor reported a record performance on the back of improved profitability despite sluggish sales at home.The nation’s largest carmaker said Thursday that it posted 2.28 trillion won ($2.02 billion) in operating profit during the first quarter of 2012, up 24.9 percent from the same period last year.This marked all-time high quarterly earnings for the automaker. Company executives attributed the performance to a product q

Financial group also plans to support creation of jobs, internship posts in Middle EastKB Financial Group plans to hold several job fairs for the baby-boomer generation this year as part of efforts to support shared-development.“As an upgrade of the KB Goodjob campaign, we are considering introducing job fairs for baby boomers this year,” a KB Financial spokesman said Thursday.Baby boomers, mainly born between 1955 and 1963, have been the major driving force in the nation’s economic development

BEIJING ― The SM sedan series of Renault Samsung Motors is expected to play a significant role in the its parent Renault Group’s project to expand its presence in China.Renault Samsung chief executive Francois Provost stressed that the consumer preferences of the Chinese are quite similar to those of Koreans.His remarks came right after France-based Renault Group unveiled the Talisman, a luxury sedan dubbed the SM7 in Korea, during the 2012 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition ― also call

Renault to produce some models in world’s largest automobile marketBEIJING ― Global carmakers including Korean players are competing to increase their market share in China, the world’s largest automobile market.In the past several years, China has overtaken the Untied States in vehicle sales per annum.While General Motors and Volkswagen had dominated the Chinese market, Hyundai Motor has continued to increase its share since it established the Beijing Hyundai corporation and factories a decade

Hyundai Motor Group plans to up the funds it provides to its subcontractors, giving out about 600 billion won ($530 million) this year. About 320 billion won will support suppliers’ research and development activities and the rest will be allocated as loans with low interest rates, the group said in a statement on Sunday.The automotive group said it is showing its commitment to co-prosperity, as its 11 business units, including Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and Hyundai Mobis, have signed a pact with

European car sales fell to a 14- year low last month, with Fiat SpA, Renault SA and PSA Peugeot Citroen posting the biggest drops, as the region’s sovereign- debt crisis caused economic growth to stall. Registrations in the 27-member European Union plus Switzerland, Norway and Iceland fell 6.6 percent from a year earlier to 1.5 million vehicles, the lowest figure for March since 1998, the Brussels-based European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said today in a statement. First- quarter sale

The U.S. auto-safety regulator said it will hold a forum on lithium-ion batteries in electric cars next month, almost a year after a General Motors Co. Chevrolet Volt caught fire following crash-testing. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced a meeting May 18 in Washington to convene government officials and auto and battery-industry representatives to talk about “safety considerations” for cars powered by lithium-ion batteries. The meeting was announced in a posting on the

At home, automaker pinning hopes on electric vehicles to offset sluggish salesRenault Samsung Motors is seemingly prioritizing overseas markets over sales at home as consumption in Korea sags and the Chinese market enjoys rapid growth.During the first quarter of 2012, Renault Samsung posted exports of 27,505 units, 64 percent of its total sales of 42,939 units.Between 2000, when France’s Renault acquired the then Korean carmaker, and 2010, the carmaker’s yearly domestic sales exceeded exports.Th

French automaker Citroen resumed sales in the local market on Thursday after a decade-long hiatus.The company under the wing of PSA Peugeot-Citroen unveiled the DS3, a premium hatchback, in Seoul on Thursday. Hanbul Motors Corp. will take on imports of the French cars.Citroen aims to sell up to 2,500 cars per annum in Korea, Eric Dumondelle, chief of the company’s Asia Pacific division told The Korea Herald.“We at Citroen have a new logo, new technology and it was the right time (to come back) i

Hyundai Motor Co., Korea’s No. 1 carmaker, has launched the third-generation Santa Fe in the local market.During an unveiling event in Incheon on Thursday, the company said it aims to sell 42,000 units of the New Santa Fe at home and 110,000 units in the overseas market this year. The automaker has also set the sales target of 385,000 units for next year ― 50,000 for domestic and 335,000 for overseas consumers.“The Santa Fe holds significant meaning for the local sport utility vehicle market and

Regulators to punish lenders for irregular loan issuance in MayCommercial banks will soon face a strict regulatory crackdown for possibly irregular practices in sales of “bancassurance” products, officials said.The Financial Supervisory Service plans to dispatch a group of inspectors to the headquarters of major banks such as Kookmin, Woori and Hana, starting in the coming weeks.In the same vein, several insurance companies, including Samsung Life and Korea Life, could be the target of close mon

Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors posted all-time high monthly sales in the European market in March, despite the worsening business environment in the wake of the eurozone debt crisis.The affiliated companies’ combined sales came to 85,393 units in Europe in March, up 15.3 percent from 74,107 units a year before.According to the European Automobile Manufactures’ Association, also known as ACEA, Hyundai reported a 13.8 percent growth with sales of 50,131 units and Kia, 17.3 percent with 35,262 units.

 CEO Kim says May show will focus on low-emission vehiclesThe Busan Exhibition & Convention Center is striving to upgrade the Busan Motor Show through this year’s event, which may be the largest ever.The Busan International Motor Show 2012 is projected to mark “58 percent growth” compared to the previous event in 2010, BEXCO president & CEO Kim Soo-ik told a press conference in Seoul on Wednesday.The auto show ― which will emphasize low-emission vehicles ― will be held for 11 days from May 24 to

The first international conference on the new trade paradigm, mainly refering to the Authorized Economic Operator, kicked off in Korea on Tuesday.About 800 senior public officials, business leaders and professors from around the world are attending the three-day forum co-hosted by the Korea Customs Service and the World Customs Organization.The conference is drawing interest as this marks the first global gathering since a group of customs authorities officially introduced the so-called AEO conc

KT&G Corp. posted growth of 4.8 percent in its market share during the first quarter, a record-high over the past decade.The local company captured 62.1 percent of the nation’s tobacco market in the first quarter, compared to 57.3 percent in the fourth quarter of last year.The figure of 4.8 percent is the highest in 14 years since KT&G posted 6.4 percent growth during the first quarter of 1998, when Korea was hit by the Asian financial crisis.The company sold about 633.2 million packs in the fir

Toyota-Lexus may overtake Volkswagen, Audi to become Korea’s third-largest car importerLexus, the premium brand of Toyota Motor, has launched all-out efforts to regain its once-high share in Korea’s import automobile market.Though Lexus was vying for the No. 1 spot in the import car industry with BMW seven or eight years ago, it yielded its position to other competitors in the wake of the record recall incident in the U.S.The Japanese brand recently slashed the price of the New GS350 sedan by ab