Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) ranked fourth in global sales but came in 10th in terms of R&D investment among 13 global automotive groups in 2020, the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) said in a report on July 7.R&D investment decreased at 12 of the 13 automakers surveyed in 2020. Only T
The Tesla Model 3 topped the list of imported cars sold in South Korea last month. In the previous month, the list was topped by the Tesla Model Y.Last month, Tesla sold 2,884 Model 3s in South Korea and the number skyrocketed from 126. The Model Y sales volume was 3,328 in May and 1,972 in June, wh
The sales volume of imported cars increased 15.2 percent year on year in the first half of this year. The most popular foreign car brand was Mercedes-Benz, followed by BMW, Audi, Volkswagen and Volvo. In that period, Mercedes-Benz Korea and BMW Korea sold more cars than GM Korea, Renault Samsung Mot
LG Magna e-Powertrain, a joint venture between LG Electronics of Korea and Magna International of Canada, has jumped into the electric vehicle motor powertrain market, which is dominated by German and Japanese companies.LG Electronics will separate part of the green business of its VS Business Divis
Samsung SDI is seeking to enter the U.S. battery market by establishing a joint venture battery plant with a global automaker."We are considering entering the U.S. market," the company’s president Jeon Young-hyun said at the battery industry exhibition “Interbattery 2021” held at COEX in Samseong-do
The number of Tesla cars newly registered in South Korea reached 3,461 last month. Those include 3,328 Model Ys, which topped the imported car market of South Korea for the first time ever that month. The Mercedes-Benz E-Class came in second with a monthly sales volume of 2,387.Last month, a total o
People Power Party lawmaker Ku Ja-keun remarked on May 30 that relatively cheaper domestic cars entail more car taxes than relatively more expensive imported cars. “The car tax on the Hyundai Grandeur is 649,000 won a year whereas that on the BMW 5 Series is 519,000 won,” he pointed out. The prices
Amid the rapid growth of the telematics market, the global market share of the VS Division at LG Electronics recently reached a new high in six years. Telematics systems are like brains of smart cars.The division’s global market share stood at 24.8 percent in the first quarter of 2021, up 7.7 percen
The combined sales of Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. in Europe increased more than four times on year in April. The stellar performance is attributable to strong sales of sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and electric vehicles along with the base effects of a sharp drop in car sales in April 2020 due
The authors are analysts of Shinhan Investment Corp. They can be reached at yjjung86@shinhan.com and ik.jung@shinhan.com, respectively. -- Ed. 1Q21 operating profit in line at KRW94bn (+57.5% YoY)Hanon Systems posted operating profit of KRW94bn (+57.5% YoY) on sales of KRW1.9tr (+11.6% YoY) for 1Q21
The Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association announced on May 10 that 97,486 imported cars, up 25.6 percent from a year ago, were sold in South Korea from January to April this year. Those include 20,203 cars with a price of at least 100 million won. The figure increased 74.13 percent y
Imported car sales in April rose 11.5 percent on year in the Korean automobile market. The best-selling imported car brand was Mercedes-Benz, followed by BMW at second place. In particular, Mercedes-Benz and BMW, which do not manufacture cars in Korea, sold more cars than GM Korea, Renault Samsung a
Unity, the world’s leading platform for creating and operating real-time 3D (RT3D) content, is partnering up with South Korea’s leading self-driving technology company Mando Co. to develop front camera simulation technology for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).Unity has signed a memorandum
J.P. Morgan recently mentioned the possibility of Samsung Electronics’ another M&A deal. According to it, the candidates include NXP, Texas Instruments and Microchip Technology, which are running manufacturing facilities in the United States.NXP has been mentioned for years as an M&A target of Samsu
Global automakers including Volkswagen, BMW and GM are planning to produce next-generation EV batteries on their own in 2030 and later.BMW announced on April 20 that it would develop prototype all-solid-state batteries by 2025 and begin to manufacture EVs equipped with the batteries in 2030 at the l
Hyundai Motor Group is installing E-pit rapid charging stations for electric vehicles (EVs) at expressway service stations. But complaints are increasing among Tesla users. Although E-pit is similar to Tesla's fast-charging facility "Super Charger," owners of Tesla models such as the Model S and
The authors are analysts of NH Investment & Securities. They can be reached at j.ko@nhqv.com and jonathan.jang@nhqv.com, respectively. -- Ed. At the Shanghai Motor Show in China (Media Day), automakers’ new model introductions focused upon EVs, with several new Chinese EV makers joining the market.
Mercedes-Benz of Germany will load batteries from China's CATL into its high-end electric luxury sedan, the EQS. The German carmaker used LG Chem's batteries for its first electric vehicle (EV) model EQC released in 2019.Mercedes-Benz will equip its EQS with CATL's square and pouch-type
Magna International, a Canadian automotive electronics company that recently decided to establish a joint venture with LG Electronics, is showing its strong interest in manufacturing Apple’s planned self-driving cars.The company plans to produce various parts for electric vehicles (EVs) using LG Ele
SK Inc.’s stakes in global mobility startups Grab in Southeast Asia and Otonomo Technologies in Israel are spiking in value as these companies are pushing for IPOs.Since 2017, SK Inc. has focused its investments in companies specializing in ride- sharing, car-sharing, and mobility technology. The in