Asean Tribune

Hyundai Motor Co. said Sunday the accumulated sales of its Genesis brand models exceeded 1 million units as of August, reaching the milestone in around eight years since the brand’s inception.

The South Korean carmaker sold 690,177 units of the models in the domestic market, along with 318,627 units overseas, according to the company’s data.

Hyundai, which launched the luxury brand in November 2015, saw the cumulative sales reach 500,000 units in May 2021.

In 2020, Genesis models achieved an annual sales record by surpassing the 100,000 mark, with a total of 132,450 units sold. Sales continued to grow to reach 215,128 units in 2022, the company added.

Over the January-August period of 2023, Hyundai sold 154,035 units of Genesis automobiles.

The most popular model so far was the G80 sedan launched in 2016, with its combined sales reaching 390,738.

Hyundai currently sells five sedans, two sport utility vehicles and three electric vehicles under the Genesis brand.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

An ongoing strike by unionized rail workers entered its fourth day with local trains operating at around 80 percent of the capacity nationwide, the land ministry said Sunday.

The Korean Railway Workers’ Union began its first strike in four years Thursday, demanding improved working conditions and an expansion of the KTX bullet train service to Suseo Station in southern Seoul, which is exclusively used by another high-speed railway service called SRT.

The ministry said the national train operation rate was tallied at 80.1 percent as of 9 a.m., up 0.9 percentage point from the same time the previous day.

The operation rates for KTX trains, passenger trains, cargo trains, and capital area subways were at 76.5 percent, 74.8 percent, 47.4 percent and 83.8 percent, respectively.

The labor union is scheduled to finish the strike at 9 a.m. Monday.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

South Korea’s economy is expected to grow 1.4 percent this year, with the country’s central bank anticipated to lower its key rate twice in 2024, an economist at S&P Global Ratings said Sunday.

The growth forecast by Rajiv Biswas, the chief economist of Asia-Pacific at S&P Global Market Intelligence, comes in line with the South Korean government’s projection made in July.

Biswas attributed South Korea’s sluggish economic growth in 2023 to the Bank of Korea’s aggressive monetary tightening policy implemented the previous year, which resulted in various challenges across the economy, including the real estate sector.

South Korea’s central bank held its key interest rate steady at 3.5 percent last month for the fifth straight time as it weighs a slowdown in growth amid moderating inflation. The rate freezes came after it delivered seven consecutive rate hikes from April 2022 to January 2023.

Biswas also noted the central bank is expected to slash its key rate starting the first half of 2024 in line with the U.S. monetary policy.

Regarding exports, the economist added the weaker global demand for semiconductors and display products recently dealt a harsh blow to South Korea’s exports.

Biswas also pointed out that although the sluggish Chinese economy has put pressure on South Korea’s outbound shipments, the decline is expected to be limited by the recovery in global demand for chips from other nations.

The economist further recommended that South Korea redirect its focus toward India and Southeast Asian countries as new partners amid the decelerating Chinese economy.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

Today, Secretary-General of ASEAN Dr Kao Kim Hourn delivered remarks at the 3rd RCEP Economic and Trade Cooperation Business Summit. In his remarks, Dr Kao encouraged the business community to take advantage of the RCEP Agreement to diversify and further integrate their supply chain in ASEAN.

Source: Association of SouthEast Asian Nation