The Korea Times

Renault Samsung appoints first Korean research head

Kwon Sang-soonBy Lee Hyo-sikRenault Samsung said Thursday that it has appointed a Korean national as the chief of its research and development (R&D) division for the first time in the company’s 15-year history.Kwon Sang-soon, a senior vice president at the Korean unit of French automaker Renault, became the firm’s R&D head because of his role in the development of the SM5 sedan and the QM5 sports utility vehicle (SUV).Renault Samsung is the first to appoint a Korean to head a research center among foreign carmakers operating in Korea, the company said. Kwon’s predecessors were French or other non-Korean nationals dispatched from the parent company in France.After graduating from Seoul National University with a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in shipbuilding, Kwon began his career at Samsung Motor. In 2002, he joined Renault Samsung, which was founded in September 2000. He led an R&D team developing the SM5 sedan and the QM5 SUV from 2002 through 2006.“For the past 15 years, our R&D division heads were non-Koreans sent by gr

Apr 30, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Renault Samsung appoints first Korean research head

People & Events

German chamber elects new head

Stefan HalusaBy Lee Hyo-sikThe Korean-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KGCCI) said Thursday that it elected Stefan Halusa, CEO of Brose Korea, as its new president.The association representing the interests of German companies operating in Korea held an annual general meeting Tuesday and chose the head of the German automotive supplier as its new chief.Halusa has been in Korea for the past four years and served as a member of the KGCCI board for the last two. He succeeded Thomas Geyer, CEO of Vector Korea, who served from April 2013 to April 2015.“I would like to extend my gratitude to KGCCI for its excellent work in 2014,” Halusa said. “I pledge to do my best to support KGCCI and promote Korea-Germany business cooperation.”In addition, Kim Tae-hyung, executive vice president of GS Global, was elected as KGCCI’s vice president; and Ludwig Feuchtmeyer, CFO of Continental Automotive Electronics, was elected as the new treasurer.KGCCI has been fostering economic relations between Germany and Korea since its foundation in 1981. With around 500 member

Apr 30, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Amway recruits interns

By Lee Hyo-sikAmway Korea said Thursday that it is recruiting university students and graduates who want to get hands-on work experience at a multinational company to be interns.Amway has been receiving applications from April 27 until May 15. The Amway Global Internships will begin on June 22 and run eight weeks, through Aug. 14.The Korean unit of a global direct marketing firm headquartered in Michigan plans to hire interns through a three-step recruitment process. Those wanting to get one of the much-coveted posts will undergo an extensive interview in English, make a presentation on topics relevant to their majors and must perform well in a group interview designed to evaluate personality.Interns will be assigned to five departments: human resources, technical regulatory, marketing, finance and business planning, and information technology, in accordance with their majors and preferences. While conducting a wide range of projects, they are expected to acquire much-needed experience and expertise in the field.Interns will also be paired with mentors, who are Amway Korea

Apr 30, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Creditors reject Hoban's bid for Kumho Industrial

A Kumho Asiana Group employee walks past an Asiana Airlines model airplane in the lobby of the group headquarters in downtown Seoul, Tuesday. The state-run Korea Development Bank and other creditors Tuesday rejected Hoban Construction’s bid for Kumho Industrial, saying what Hoban is willing to pay for Kumho Asiana Group’s holding firm is below their expectations. / Yonhap By Lee Hyo-sik Hoban Construction, a mid-sized builder based in the southwest, was the sole bidder for Kumho Industrial, the state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) said Tuesday.“Hoban was the only entity that submitted a bid for Kumho Industrial,” a KDB spokesman said. “We will announce later whether creditors select Hoban as a preferred bidder or not, and how the sales will proceed from here.”KDB did not disclose how much money Hoban was willing to pay for Kumho Asiana Group’s holding companyThe bank and other creditors, which were open to receive tenders for Kumho Industrial for the past five weeks, closed the bid at 3 p.m. Tuesday.  In late February, KDB pi

Apr 28, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

S-Oil swinging to profit in 1st quarter

By Lee Hyo-sikS-Oil, the country’s third-largest refiner by revenue, said Monday that its operating profit reached 238.1 billion won ($216.5 million) in the first three months of this year due to improved refining margins.This is a turnaround from a 213.2 billion won operating loss in the previous three months.However, the refiner’s sales fell 30.2 percent to 4.37 trillion won in the first quarter from 6.27 trillion won in the fourth quarter of 2014.S-Oil’s improved bottom line in the first quarter indicates that three other local refiners ― SK Innovation, GS Caltex and Hyundai Oil Bank, which have yet to announce their first-quarter results ― could have performed better than in 2014.“Our first quarter sales declined from the previous quarter amid the continued global economic downturn,” said an S-Oil spokesman. “In addition, falling gasoline and other fuel prices at home and abroad reduced the sales value. We expanded inventories ahead of scheduled facility maintenance in the second quarter. But rising refining margins helped improve our

Apr 27, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Foreign cigarette firms unhappy with KT&G's monopoly of military supply

Foreign cigarette makers have expressed their discontent over the latest decision by the Ministry of National Defense to make only KT&G products available for the nation’s armed forces.Korea’s largest tobacco firm has been the sole cigarette supplier for the military over the past 10 years they say, arguing that this monopoly should raise questions over the defense ministry’s selection process in restricting soldiers’ rights to choose.On April 17, the ministry said four cigarette brands all manufactured by KT&G will be sold at post exchanges (PX), a military version of a convenience store inside the base, over the next year.For the next 12 months, KT&G is expected to earn at least 80 billion won ($73 million) from selling its four cigarette brands.None of the three major foreign tobacco firms ― Philip Morris International Korea, British American Tobacco Korea and Japan Tobacco International Korea ― are allowed to sell their products to soldiers on base.In 2007, the defense ministry allowed foreign firms to bid to supply the PX stores. Acc

Apr 27, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Food companies flocking to Foodpolis

BGX Group chairman Bi GuoxiangCEO of Hampton Grains John KwakBy Lee Hyo-sik  The Korea National Food Cluster, named Foodpolis, has been attracting keen attention from food companies both at home and abroad who are looking to set up a strategic base for China, Japan and other Asian markets.So far, 107 companies and research centers, including 51 from overseas, have expressed interest in establishing a presence in the state-administered food cluster in Korea’s southwestern region. When completed by 2016, the government expects at least 150 companies and 10 research centers will operate in Foodpolis, churning out $14 billion in output annually and generating 22,000 new jobs.On March 20, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with BGX Group from China, a distributor of refrigerated and frozen food products. Established in 2007, BGX earned nearly $10 billion in sales last year from running eight wholesale markets and 50,000 large-scale distribution centers in Nanjing and Harbin.Under the agreement, BGX will estab

Apr 26, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

KOTRA to hold China export fair

By Lee Hyo-sikThe Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) will hold an export fair in Seoul next week for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) looking to sell their goods to Chinese consumers.The event will make the best use of the terms of the Korea-China free trade agreement (FTA) ― which is expected to turn the world’s second-largest economy into Korea’s largest foreign market ― before the pact goes into effect, KOTRA said.The state-run trade promotion agency said Thursday that in cooperation with the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corp., it will organize the “Korea-China FTA Business Plaza” at the KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, on April 27.More than 300 Chinese companies are expected to attend the upcoming fair seeking to buy a wide range of made-in-Korea products, including consumer goods, agricultural products and IT parts. They include China’s largest private enterprise, Suning Group, online search engine Baidu, smartphone maker Huawei, home shopping channel operator Happigo and state-run pharmaceutical firm Sinop

Apr 23, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

EU removes Korea from illegal fishing list

By Lee Hyo-sikThe European Union (EU) removed Korea from the list of illegal fishing countries, making it easier for Korean vessels to operate in international waters and sell marine products abroad, government officials said Tuesday.The Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE), the department responsible for EU maritime policies, said that it is taking Korea off the list of preliminary illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) nations.In November 2013, the EU named Asia’s fourth-largest economy as a preliminary IUU country, along with Ghana and Curacao in the Netherlands Antilles.It accused Korean fishing companies of repetitively engaging in illegal fishing in West African waters. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries was also accused of being too lenient on the owners of the vessels.The United States removed Korea from its list of preliminary IUU nations, Feb. 10.“The EU’s lifting of Korea from its list of IUU nations was possible through the concerted efforts by all concerned government agencies,” said Vice Minister of Oceans and Fis

Apr 21, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Hyundai Motor affiliates threaten strike

By Lee Hyo-sikUnionized workers at 14 affiliates of Hyundai Motor Group are pushing to organize a group-wide solidarity strike as part of efforts to press the management to accept their demands regarding the scope of “ordinary wages.”The union has been demanding that the company include all types of bonuses paid to workers as ordinary wages, but the management has refused, opting to have the court decide the extent of ordinary wages.The definition of ordinary wages is crucial for the union and management because it is the basis for the calculation of overtime pay, severance payments and other forms of remuneration.With both sides poles apart, Korea’s largest automaker will likely grapple with the prolonged uneasy labor-management relations.According to Hyundai Motor Group, Monday, the unions of its 14 subsidiaries, including Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and Hyundai Steel, have decided to ask the National Labor Relations Commission to mediate talks between labor and management. The unions plan to do so by April 30.Unionized workers here normally take labor-management di

Apr 20, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Lee Hyo-sik

Read more

Renault Samsung appoints first Korean research head

German chamber elects new head

Amway recruits interns

Creditors reject Hoban's bid for Kumho Industrial

S-Oil swinging to profit in 1st quarter

Foreign cigarette firms unhappy with KT&G's monopoly of military supply

Food companies flocking to Foodpolis

KOTRA to hold China export fair

EU removes Korea from illegal fishing list

Hyundai Motor affiliates threaten strike

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