VW Reportedly Put a Price on the Table for GM’s Opel after Hearing Rumors about Hyundai’s Interest

German monthly publication ‘Manager Magazin’ reported in its latest issue that the Volkswagen Group has a far deeper interest in Opel than originally thought.

Citing unnamed sources close to the automaker, the financial magazine said that Volkswagen gave General Motors a rough estimate of what it is willing to pay for Opel after the German company heard rumors about Hyundai’s alleged interest in the European brand.

Always according to the article, GM is said to have found the offer for Opel too lo to accept.

Dow Jones came in contact with a Volkswagen spokesman who declined to comment on the matter simply stating that "We don't comment on market rumors in general”.

On Opel’s behalf, a company spokesperson called the German magazine’s report “pure speculation” and pointed towards a previous statement regarding the matter in which GM said: “Opel has been a part of the GM family since 1928 and remains important for the company”.

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2012 Hyundai Sonata Receives its First Facelift in South Korea

Hyundai has blessed the South Korean market version of its Sonata mid-size sedan with its very first mild facelift. Just don’t blink because you may very well miss it.

The light cosmetic surgery on the outside brings a revamped front grille with a little bit less chrome on top and around the sides, plus new LED taillights at the back, reshaped mirror casings and a fresh choice of alloy wheel designs including a set of 18-inch multispoke rims.

There are some mild tweaks inside, namely the new trim options, higher quality materials, the addition of LED spot lights and improved standard equipment throughout the range.

In South Korea, while the Sonata continues with the 165-horsepower 2.0-liter four-cylinder unit, matched to a manual gearbox or an automatic transmission, for the 2012MY, Hyundai replaced the 2.4-liter gasoline engine with the more powerful 2.0-liter turbocharged four-pot rated at 271-horses.

Hyundai did not say when or if the styling changes will pass on to the international market version of the Sonata, but we promise to act surprised if the U.S. model receives a similar refresh within the next 12 months.

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GM Agrees to Pay Korean Workers a Record Bonus of $6,140 Each and Increase Basic Salaries by 4.7%!

The South Korean division of General Motors has agreed to a record bonus payment for its employees following a partial strike last week. This was the first organized union strike to hit GM Korea in three years and it led to a production loss of 9,700 units.

The agreement between GM Korea and the union includes a raise of basic salaries by 4.7% and, more importantly, a $6,140 (6.5 million won) bonus to each worker.

The local division of GM was originally formed out of the remains of Daewoo, and is the American firm’s biggest manufacturer of Chevrolet models outside of North America, exporting more than 80% of its production and accounts for one in every four cars of the brand sold globally.

However, the good news for GM’s South Korean workers might not be so good for domestic manufacturers, like Hyundai and Kia, who are also facing demands for significant hikes in wages and bonuses.

According to analysts, GM’s move may have a negative effect on the countries competitiveness. Currently, South Korea is the world’s fifth largest car industry just below Germany, with 4.1 million vehicles and a 6% market share in 2010.

The Hyundai Group is also the world’s fifth biggest carmaker reporting record profits last year, largely due to the significant increase of its share in big markets such as the US.

However, according to analyst of Korea Investments Securities Suh Sung-moon, these profits could also prove to be a problem since they are bound to increase workers’ demands to even higher levels than GM’s, making negotiations difficult.

“Rising wage costs in Korea are a big threat undermining automakers’ competitiveness, especially versus Japan, which has traditionally been their benchmark”, told the Financial Times, Ashvin Chotai, managing director of Intelligence Automotive Asia, a consultancy. “In Japan wages have been going down”.

Report sources: Reuters & The Financial Times

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