Hyundai, Kia report robust EV US sales, shrug off impact of IRA

Hyundai Motor Group reported robust growth in electric vehicle sales in the US this year, shrugging off the impact of not being eligible for consumer tax credits for EVs under the Inflation Reduction Act. According to the carmaker Sunday, Hyundai and Kia sold a combined 77,772 EVs in the US during the January-October period this year, a 53.7 percent surge from a year ago. Hyundai alone sold 51,563 vehicles, more than doubling from the same period last year. The carmaker’s cumulative EV sal

Nov. 5, 2023

Volvo expands presence in Korean market

Volvo is putting the pedal to the metal as it inches closer and closer to overtaking Audi’s third place in South Korea’s auto import market that has long been led by the three German brands: Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi. According to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association’s monthly report released Friday, the Swedish automaker sold 1,263 units in the country in October. Audi which sold 1,141 vehicles in the same period. With that, Volvo Cars Korea became the

Nov. 3, 2023

KG Mobility, BYD bolster ties on EV batteries, hybrids

KG Mobility, formerly known as Ssangyong Motor, has clinched a deal with China-based electric vehicle maker BYD to set up a new EV battery pack manufacturing plant and develop a hybrid car system in Korea. KG Mobility Chairman Kwak Jae-sun, KG Mobility CEO Chung Yong-won, BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu, BYD subsidiary FinDreams Battery Chairman He Long and other executives from the two companies participated in the signing ceremony held at BYD's headquarters in Shenzhen, China on Wednesday. &ldq

Nov. 2, 2023

Kia unveils ‘tiger-faced’ new K5

Hyundai Motor Group’s Kia on Thursday unveiled The New K5, the third generation model of its bestselling midsized sedan, setting an ambitious sales target of more than 30,000 units at home in the first year. “More than 6,000 K5 cars were preordered since Oct. 25, with hybrid models taking up the biggest portion, followed by gasoline models,” said Choi Yang-suk, head of the domestic marketing team at Kia, during a press conference held in Seoul on Wednesday. “Although the

Nov. 2, 2023

[Photo News] Final sprint for Busan Expo

Hyundai Motor Group said Thursday that it has begun a monthlong campaign in Paris to support Busan's bid to host the World Expo 2030 by playing a promotional video on 270 digital screens across famous locations and shopping malls in the French capital. Members of the Bureau International des Expositions will vote to decide the host city of the global mega event on Nov. 28. in Paris. Saudi Arabia's Riyadh and Italy's Rome are vying to host the Expo. (Hyundai Motor Group)

Nov. 2, 2023

[Photo News] Mercedes meets Haute couture

Mercedes-Benz Korea on Monday unveiled the Mercedes-Maybach S 680 4MATIC Haute Voiture Edition, a limited special edition model inspired by high-end fashion, for the first time in the country. Only 150 units of the special edition of the German automaker's most prestigious vehicle have been produced worldwide. Of them, 20 have been allocated to Korea, the world's second-largest market for the Maybach. The luxury vehicle's price begins at 590 million won ($437,000). (Mercedes-Benz

Oct. 30, 2023

[Herald Interview] Hyundai Motor takes step-by-step approach in Japan

YOKOHAMA, JAPAN -- South Korea’s leading automaker Hyundai Motor aims to expand its presence in Japan with patience as the market is known for its tough-to-enter nature due to the overwhelming dominance of the country’s homegrown brands such as Honda, Nissan and Toyota. “Since we started taking orders in May last year and began to deliver cars in August, we have sold over 700 vehicles as of August this year,” said Cho Won-sang, CEO of Hyundai Mobility Japan, in an intervi

Oct. 29, 2023

Hyundai Motor’s yearly earnings hit record-high W20tr in Q3

With upbeat earnings in the third quarter, Hyundai Motor Group's yearly operating revenue has surpassed the 20 trillion won ($14.8 billion) mark, the company’s earnings report showed Friday. The South Korean auto giant’s Hyundai and Kia brands hit a combined 20.8 trillion won in operating profit and sales revenue of 196.5 trillion won during the January-September period. The two carmakers’ annual profit and revenue in 2022 were 17.5 trillion won and 229.8 trillion won, res

Oct. 27, 2023

[Photo News] Best mechanic skills

Participants of Hyundai Motor Group’s 14th World Skill Olympics, the biannual competition event for car maintenance technicians, pose for a photo in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, Thursday. This year, Haydar Ali from Indonesia won first place among the 75 participants from 56 countries in Europe, Central America and Southeast Asia. Since 1995, the annual event has evaluated mechanics’ skills in diagnosing and fixing problems with international combustion engine cars and, more

Oct. 27, 2023

Hyundai Motor posts record Q3 earnings on upbeat US sales

Hyundai Motor Group said Thursday it hit record earnings in the third quarter thanks to all-time high sales in the US market. The company’s operating profit from July to September skyrocketed 146.3 percent from last year to 3.8 trillion won ($2.8 billion), its highest figure since 2011. Its sales revenue increased 8.7 percent to 41 trillion won in the same period. The world’s third-largest carmaker sold a total of 1.04 million cars abroad and within Korea, a 2 percent jump from a yea

Oct. 26, 2023

Samsung SDI logs record-high Q3 sales on solid EV battery demand

Samsung SDI said Thursday it has posted a record-high revenue in the third quarter, driven by upbeat sales of electric vehicle batteries. In the July–September period, the company’s revenue surged 10.8 percent on-year to 5.9 trillion won ($4.4 billion), mostly boosted by increased sales of prismatic and cylindrical batteries cells for EVs which saw a 60 percent jump in profit and a 9.3 percent operating profit margin. Its operating profit decreased 12.3 percent to 496 billion won in

Oct. 26, 2023

LG Energy Solution ups ante in price war against Chinese rivals

LG Energy Solution plans to boost production of price-competitive electric vehicle batteries -- including lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries -- in a move to expand its footing in the low-cost EV market dominated by Chinese rivals, the company said in its third quarter earnings call on Wednesday. “We plan to launch LFP batteries, and LFMP and manganese-rich batteries in 2026 and 2027, respectively to strengthen our low-priced battery product portfolio,” said Lee Chang-sil, chief f

Oct. 25, 2023

Hyundai looks to repeat late founder’s Mideast success with EVs, hydrogen

Hyundai Motor Group is venturing into the Middle East as it explores new business opportunities with cutting-edge technologies in the region, looking to recreate the pioneering legacy of Chung Ju-yung, Hyundai Group’s late founder. During President Yoon Suk Yeol's state visit to the Middle East, the South Korean conglomerate announced a series of agreements and contracts to set up a new manufacturing plant for electric vehicles and cooperate in the eco-friendly energy sector with effo

Oct. 24, 2023

Samsung, Hyundai ink first EV battery deal

Samsung SDI said Monday it has clinched a deal to supply electric vehicle batteries for Hyundai Motor Group – the first battery partnership between the two chaebol groups. Under the deal, Samsung SDI will supply prismatic batteries produced at its Hungary plant for Hyundai EVs made in Europe for seven years, from 2026 through 2032. Although the exact size of the deal was not disclosed immediately, industry sources predict that Samsung SDI could supply batteries to power up to 500,000 high-

Oct. 23, 2023

China’s export curbs on graphite may raise battery prices for EVs

China last week unveiled its plans to restrict exports of graphite starting from December, piling pressure on Korean companies that are highly dependent on one of the key anode materials for making electric vehicle batteries. The world’s top graphite producer and exporter said Friday that export permits will be mandated to ship synthetic graphite material -- including high-purity, high-hardness and high-density versions -- as well as natural flake graphite from China. Chinese graphite manu

Oct. 23, 2023

Mercedes-Benz Korea ramps up efforts to nurture tech talent

Mercedes-Benz Korea has been investing heavily in training employees and young students as part of efforts to enhance customer service and technical expertise in the automotive maintenance field. Since 2007, the Korean unit of the German luxury carmaker has organized “Korea TechMasters,” a biennial technical skills competition, while also running separate automotive training programs including Ausbildung and Automotive Electric Traineeship. This year’s technical contest saw

Oct. 22, 2023

EcoPro seeks big leap as global battery materials maker

South Korean battery materials manufacturer EcoPro, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, has laid out a goal to post 10 trillion won ($7.41 billion) in sales next year. EcoPro CEO Song Ho-jun and top executives of the firm's subsidiaries, including EcoPro BM, participated in a celebratory event held at the company’s headquarters in Ochang, North Chungcheong Province, on Friday. Preparing for the next 25 years, EcoPro said it plans to develop game changer materials, diversi

Oct. 22, 2023

[KH Explains] Is Tesla ditching its premium strategy?

Tesla, the world’s No. 1 electric vehicle manufacturer, is slashing car prices worldwide to further consolidate its leadership, seemingly willing to sacrifice its long-held premium brand image. In September, Tesla’s Model Y sport utility vehicle topped import car sales in Korea, selling a total of 4,206 vehicles, an 876 percent surge from a month ago, according to market tracker Carisyou. The Model Y outpaced Mercedes-Benz’s E-Class, the best-selling import car of 2022, which s

Oct. 22, 2023

Hyundai Motor, Kia ranked in mid range of global eco-friendliness list

Hyundai Motor and its affiliate firm Kia were ranked in ninth place on a new Greenpeace study on 15 automakers' decarbonization efforts, down four spots from the environmental organization's assessment a year ago. According to Greenpeace East Asia’s analysis on Thursday, the South Korean carmakers received 5.58 points for the proportion of zero-emission vehicle sales and a mere 3 points for decarbonizing efforts in their supply chains. Noting that the sales of sports utility vehi

Oct. 19, 2023

[Photo News] Kia EV9 for Rafael Nadal

Korean automaker Kia presents the EV9, the carmaker’s first three-row battery-powered sport utility vehicle, to its brand ambassador and renowned tennis player Rafael Nadal at the IFEMA Convention Center in Madrid on Wednesday. In October 2021, the company gave Nadal the EV6, its first electric vehicle to have adopted Hyundai Motor Group’s EV platform. Kia has sponsored Nadal since 2004 and recently renewed the partnership until 2025. (Kia)

Oct. 19, 2023