Posco Future M wins record W671b anode deal

Posco Future M, the battery materials arm of Posco Group, has secured its largest-ever anode materials supply contract, worth 671 billion won ($468.3 million), with a global automaker. According to Posco Future M’s regulatory filing on Tuesday, the company will supply natural graphite anode materials over four years from October 2027 to September 2031. The contract includes an option to extend through 2037 by mutual agreement, which could raise the total value to 1.7 trillion won. The client’s n

Oct. 14, 2025

US port fee piles pressure on Hyundai, Kia amid tariff delay

Hyundai Motor and Kia are facing mounting cost pressures in the US market as Washington begins imposing a new port entry fee on foreign-built vehicle carriers, adding to the burden of the 25 percent import tariff. Starting Tuesday, the US will collect a $46-per-net-ton entry fee on all non-US-built vehicle carriers entering American ports under a Section 301 action announced by the US Trade Representative in April. The measure aims to protect the domestic shipbuilding industry from Chinese compe

Oct. 14, 2025

Hyundai, Tesla slash prices as US EV battle intensifies

Hyundai Motor and Tesla have ignited a fierce electric vehicle price war in the US, slashing prices and rolling out budget models in a bid to defend their footing in the world’s second-largest EV market. According to industry sources on Tuesday, Hyundai Motor is continuing its aggressive price cutting strategy launched earlier this month, reducing prices on the 2026 Ioniq 5 by up to $9,800 and offering a $7,500 cash rebate on the 2025 model. Hyundai Motor America CEO Randy Parker had mentioned,

Oct. 14, 2025

Porsche Korea Q3 sales jump 38% on strong EV demand

Porsche Korea said Tuesday it sold 8,345 vehicles in the third quarter, marking a 38.1 percent increase from a year earlier, driven by rising demand for electric models. The strong performance contributed to the brand’s highest sales volume among overseas emerging markets, according to the company. Globally, Porsche AG delivered 212,509 vehicles between January and September, with electric models accounting for 35.2 percent of total sales. Pure EVs made up 23.1 percent, while plug-in hybrids acc

Oct. 14, 2025

In his five years, Chung Euisun has cemented Hyundai’s global top-three rank

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun, having cemented the auto conglomerate’s title of world’s third-largest carmaker, seeks to sustain growth while weathering the storms of US tariffs and Chinese automakers' expanding global reach. Marking the fifth anniversary of the top leadership appointment on Tuesday, Chung has guided the rise of Hyundai Motor, Kia and its premium brand Genesis on the global stage over the past five years. The three brands sold 7.23 million vehicles last year,

Oct. 13, 2025

Korens joins government-backed AI manufacturing project

Korens, a South Korean automotive parts maker, said on Monday that it has been selected to join the government’s physical manufacturing AI support project led by the Ministry of Science and ICT. Through the initiative, Korens plans to adopt Korean-style physical AI technology and transform its production sites into AI-driven autonomous factories capable of making operational decisions without human intervention. The company expects that applying physical AI to existing facilities will reduce pro

Oct. 13, 2025

LG Energy Solution defies EV slowdown with ESS-led profit

LG Energy Solution has posted a second consecutive quarter of profit excluding US subsidies, as surging demand for energy storage systems offset a downturn in electric vehicle sales. According to its regulatory filing on Monday, the company’s operating profit rose 34.1 percent from a year earlier and 2.4 percent from the previous quarter to 601.3 billion won ($420.9 million) in the July-September period. Without the Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit under the US Inflation Reduction Act, w

Oct. 13, 2025

SK On expands Georgia plant for EVs, ESS amid US curbs on China

SK On is expanding its Georgia plant into a full-scale US production base for both electric vehicle and energy storage system batteries, bolstering its position amid tightening restrictions on Chinese battery imports. In September SK On signed its first major US ESS deal with Colorado-based renewable developer Flatiron Energy Development, valued at about 2 trillion won ($1.4 billion) for 7.2 gigawatt-hours of cost-efficient lithium iron phosphate batteries. To deliver the four-year contract star

Oct. 12, 2025

Hyundai Motor’s autonomous hydrogen truck makes Time magazine’s Best Inventions list

Hyundai Motor Company announced Friday that its Xcient Fuel Cell Class 8 truck has been selected for Time magazine’s Best Inventions of 2025, recognized for bridging the transition toward both hydrogen mobility and autonomous driving. Time's annual list highlights 300 groundbreaking innovations from around the world that are transforming human life and daily experiences. Jointly developed by Hyundai Motor and PlusAI, a US-based autonomous driving technology company, the heavy-duty truck is built

Oct. 10, 2025

Hybrid boom offsets EV slump in Korea’s auto market

Despite challenges ranging from US auto tariffs to slowing electric vehicle demand, Korea’s automotive market is showing resilience, driven by carmakers’ push to expand hybrid offerings and strengthen their SUV and RV portfolios. From January to September, a highlight of Hyundai Motor Group’s new launches was the All-New Palisade, the first revamped version of the large SUV in six years. A major selling point was the addition of a hybrid powertrain option -- a first in a family SUV. Consumer res

Oct. 7, 2025

Korea’s pickup sales roar back as Kia, KG roll out fresh models

Korea’s pickup market is seeing its first rebound in six years, fueled by domestic carmakers rolling out new models that have spurred fresh competition in the mid-range segment. According to industry tracker Carisyou, 17,136 units of pickups were sold in Korea between January and August, up 74.9 percent from a year earlier. The figure has already far surpassed the 2024 annual total of 13,954 units. Leading the sales surge is Kia’s Tasman, the company’s first pickup in over 50 years. It sold 5,93

Oct. 7, 2025

Lexus, Volvo, Audi vie for 4th place in Korea’s import car spot

Lexus and Volvo are locked in fierce competition to claim the No. 4 spot in Korea’s imported car market, while BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Tesla dominate the top three by a wide margin. The fight for the “gateway position” into the upper tier has grown more intense as Audi ramps up new model launches to reclaim its position among the leading imported brands. According to data from the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association, Lexus ranked fourth in cumulative sales from January to Augu

Oct. 6, 2025

SK Discovery exits SK D&D in W74b deal with Hahn & Co.

SK Discovery Co., an investment arm of South Korea’s SK Group, said Wednesday it has sold its entire stake in real estate affiliate SK D&D to private equity firm Hahn & Company. The deal includes over 5.8 million shares, accounting for SK Discovery’s full 31.3 percent interest, with a transaction value of around 74.2 billion won ($52.7 million). According to SK Discovery, the stake sale reflects SK Group’s portfolio reshaping drive, under which the group seeks to secure 80 trillion won by 2026 a

Oct. 1, 2025

Unionized workers of Kia vote to accept wage hike deal

Unionized workers of Kia, South Korea's second-largest carmaker, voted Tuesday to accept a wage hike deal for this year, the company said, marking the fifth consecutive year the company wrapped up wage talks without a strike. Kia said 73.1 percent of 21,356 union members who participated in the vote supported the tentative deal reached between labor and management. The agreement includes a 100,000 won (US$71) increase in monthly base pay, a performance-based bonus equivalent to 350 percent of ba

Sept. 30, 2025

Weflo named only Korean startup in Gartner’s Physical AI top list

South Korean aviation mobility startup Weflo said Tuesday it has been selected for the drone sector in Gartner’s “Emerging Tech: Top-Funded Startups in Physical AI” report, becoming the only Korean company on the list. Gartner analyzed 130 physical artificial intelligence startups that raised venture capital between January 2023 and June 2025, with a total of $12.3 billion in investments. Weflo was named among the top nine drone firms by investment size. Physical AI, highlighted as a key theme a

Sept. 30, 2025