Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, the world’s largest premium automaker, must pay a $3 million U.S. civil penalty for delays in reporting auto-safety defects and recalls of about 338,700 vehicles in 2010.Munich-based BMW’s fine is the largest related to safety by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the investigator of automobile defects and regulator of recalls, since the record $16.4 million levied against Toyota Motor Corp. in 2010. It’s NHTSA’s second-largest penalty since at

Despite worries, they seek to connect affiliates for high-end synergyMajor financial groups have been in competition to introduce a fresh business concept which connects units, such as banks and brokerages.Hana Financial Group introduced the “matrix” system in the local market in 2008.Shinhan Financial launched a similar unit by selecting a group of employees from Shinhan Bank and Shinhan Investment Corp. last month.Woori Financial has been in discussion with major affiliates to join the move la

Group completes KEB takeover payment to Lone Star and Korea EximbankHana Financial Group chairman Kim Seung-yu confirmed his earlier stance that he will step down from his post.Kim reiterated his willingness to resign during a meeting with reporters right after he participated the financial group’s board meeting on future management policies on Thursday.“We (executives) gave up persuading chairman Kim to serve one more term,” a senior executive also said, adding that the chairman has not reverse

KB Financial Group and Shinhan Financial Group reported robust earnings in 2011 on the back of their policy to seek management efficiency.KB Financial posted 2.37 trillion won ($2.07 billion) in net profit last year. Its total assets came to 361.6 trillion won, up 28.1 trillion won from a year earlier.Its flagship KB Kookmin Bank saw its assets reach 276.7 trillion won and KB Kookmin Card recorded 13.4 trillion won.Shinhan Financial, which owns the nation’s largest credit card firm, posted 3.1 t

Hyundai Motor unveiled the Avante Coupe, dubbed the Elantra Coupe in North America, during the 2012 Chicago Auto Show.Hyundai, set to launch the two-door midsize sedan in Korea and major overseas markets, picked the U.S. market as its first target.“The Avante Coupe is equipped with a 1.8-liter engine with 148-horsepower,” the company said Thursday. “It will hit showrooms in the U.S. during the first half of the year.” In addition, the carmaker introduced the i30 hatchback, dubbed the Elantra GT

The Financial Services Commission approved Hana Financial Group’s application to take over Jeil 2 Savings Bank and Ace Mutual Savings Bank.With the regulatory endorsement, the financial group’s secondary banking unit, named Hana Savings Bank, is poised to launch business on Feb. 17.Hana Financial won the bid to acquire the two distressed savings banks last December.Jeil 2 Savings Bank, which is headquartered in Seoul, has assets of 503.7 billion won ($441.8 million). Ace Mutual is based in Inche

Woori Financial pinning hopes on lawmakers’ push while government takes wait-and-see stanceWoori Financial Group, which aims to launch a stand-alone credit card operation, is pinning hopes on an early law revision so that its goal can be attained this year.Though the financial group has sought to spin off a credit card unit from Woori Bank for about a year, financial regulators are taking a wait-and-see or skeptical position over the move amid heated competition in the card industry.But a revisi

Moody’s says Korean banks vulnerable to eurozone debt crisisA global investment bank cited the central bank’s monetary policy as a key solution to resolving the growing worries over the record-high household debt.Goldman Sachs predicted that a soft landing of Korea’s household debt will be possible according to the Bank of Korea’s interest rate-setting.Its optimistic view could be contradictory to the prevailing anxiety in the market that household debt is a ticking time-bomb as outstanding cons

Companies’ decision reflects government move to cope with delinquent loansCredit card companies decided to lower the interest rates on customers’ overdue payments by a maximum of 1 percentage point.Their move comes after the Financial Supervisory Service issued a warning against reckless credit card loans with high interest rates.Major firms ― Shinhan Card, KB Kookmin Card, Samsung Card, Lotte Card and Hana SK Card ― will slash the extra rates on delinquent loans.Shinhan Card, the nation’s No. 1

Foreign carmakers grabbed nearly 9 percent of the automobile market in Korea last month, marking the second-highest monthly share in history.According to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association, sales of import cars came to 9,441 units in January, up 9 percent from a year earlier.The import cars accounted for 8.92 percent of the combined sales, including made-in-Korea cars, totaling 105,889 units last month.Their market share is the second-highest since they posted 8.96 perce

About 1 million stores participate in protest to demand reduction of service chargesA million retailers nationwide are set to boycott payment via Shinhan Card from Feb. 20.Their protest against the nation’s largest credit card firm is due to the card industry’s lukewarm attitude toward cutting settlement service charges on retailers.Members of the retailer association notified consumers on Monday that they will not accept Shinhan Card for payment of goods.The retailers reportedly demanded cuttin

Ministry’s excluding KDB from list of public agencies ignites pros and consThe government’s recent decision to exclude KDB Financial Group from the list of public corporations has paved the way for the lender to speed up its privatization project, financial sources said.In late January, the Finance Ministry took the state-run financial group off the yearly list of public agencies.But the government’s policy, which has paved the way for KDB Financial to push for a stake sale, is inviting contradi

Chairman may seek term extension or hold other post to resolve KEB takeoverHana Financial Group has remained undecided as to whether to replace or retain incumbent chairman Kim Seung-yu.Kim, whose term expires this March, has expressed his intention to resign. But group spokespeople did not rule out the possibility that his term will be extended.“Outside directors said they will persuade chairman Kim to serve one more term by one year,” a Hana Financial spokesman said Thursday.“Nothing has yet t

The labor union of Korea Exchange Bank sought an injunction to block financial regulators’ endorsement of Hana Financial Group’s takeover of KEB.“We (and a group of KEB’s small investors) filed for the injunction with the Constitutional Court late Jan. 31,” a KEB union leader said on Wednesday.The unionized workers’ move comes four days after the Financial Services Commission approved Hana Financial’s application to acquire the bank from U.S.-based Lone Star Funds last Friday.The FSC has been ne

Hyundai Motor has launched a cheaper model of the Sonata hybrid sedan, with a price tag set below 30 million won ($26,300).The new hybrid model is aimed at attracting more middle-income consumers as the eco-friendly vehicle has been quite expensive compared to gasoline-powered models.“The new model is cheaper by about 1.1 million won than the original Sonata hybrid,” the company said in a statement Wednesday.To lower the consumer prices, a spokesman said, several options including leather steeri

Lenders see combined profit reach 12 trillion won, up 29.2% from a year beforeKorean banks posted a robust combined profit last year on the back of their record-high earnings from service charges.According to the Financial Supervisory Service, banks’ 2011 earnings came to about 12 trillion won ($10.5 billion), up 29.2 percent from 9.3 trillion won a year earlier.Noticeably, their earnings from service fees, including those on transactions via automated teller machines, marked an all-time high of

Financial consumers will be banned from using credit cards that rely solely on magnetic strips starting from September.The Financial Supervisory Service said Tuesday that consumers are required to replace their magnetic cards with integrated circuit cards by September.In its unveiling of the 2012 regulatory policies, the FSS said its move is aimed at preventing fraudulent financial transactions amid a series of crimes with stolen credit cards.“Some transactions via the magnetic strip cards will

Board of Audit and Inspection to examine FSC, FSS until Feb. 24The Board of Audit and Inspection launched an intensive investigation into the nation’s two financial regulators on Monday.The state auditor, which completed its preliminary audit earlier this month, will carry out an intensive audit on the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service between Jan. 30 and Feb. 24.The audit comes after the FSC endorsed Hana Financial Group’s application to take over Korea Exchang

Citibank Korea plans to actively support Korean enterprises seeking mergers and acquisitions in overseas markets this year.“In a bid to make Korean firms hold opportunity to take over many M&A targets, we seek to enhance financing to them abroad,” a Citibank executive said Monday.He said there are many M&A chances in overseas markets in the wake of the global economic slowdown.For the support, he said the bank “is poised to open the “Korea Desk,” a financial network of Citibank Korea, in three o

U.S. luxury cars manufacturers like Cadillac and Lincoln, respectively run by GM and Ford, are struggling to win back a share of the expanding luxury car market, largely controlled by Japanese and German automakers.These brands, which once embodied the very essence of luxury cars, saw quality decline in the years before the industry crisis, and drivers abandoned them in their droves.Now they must recover their former glory by improving entry-level models, which was not their strong suit, but whi