Hyundai chief meets N. Korean leader: report

(ATTN: UPDATES lead, paras 2-3 with minor changes)
SEOUL, Aug. 16 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il met with the visiting
chairwoman of South Korea's Hyundai Group in Pyongyang Sunday and had a friendly
chat with her, the North's media reported, a sign that could augur well for her
group's troubled business with the communist country.
Hyun Jung-eun traveled to North Korea on Monday for what had been expected to be
a three-day mission to win the release of an employee detained there since March.

The Hyundai worker, Yu Seong-jin, was freed and returned home Thursday, but the
chairwoman remained in Pyongyang apparently waiting for a meeting with Kim who,
according to the North's media, was out of town. She extended her stay in the
North five times.
"Comrade Kim Jong-il met Hyundai Group chairwoman, and she presented a present to
our leader," the North's Korean Central Broadcasting Station reported. "Kim
talked with the chairwoman in a good atmosphere."
Kim Jong-il reportedly takes a positive view toward Hyundai, which pioneered
cross-border business with North Korea about a decade ago. He met the Hyundai
chief in 2005 and 2007 during her trips to the country.
Hyundai is currently in dire financial shape after its joint tourism ventures in
North Korea hit a snag last year amid worsening political tensions. All Hyundai
business projects in North Korea except for a joint industrial park in the
North's border city of Kaesong remain suspended.
The recently released Hyundai worker was detained at the industrial park on March
30 for allegedly slandering the North's political system. His release came days
after former U.S. President Bill Clinton secured the release of two American
journalists after a meeting with the communist leader in Pyongyang.
Hyundai Group has so far invested US$1.2 billion in North Korea. Seoul suspended
Hyundai's Mount Kumgang tour last year after a North Korean soldier shot dead a
South Korean tourist who strayed into a military zone in the area.
Hyundai's last-remaining joint venture, the industrial park, also faces
uncertainty as North Korea is demanding hefty hikes in wages and rent.
The industrial park is a cash cow for the impoverished North currently under U.N.
sanctions for its second nuclear test in May. More than $26 million was paid in
wages alone last year.
sam@yna.co.kr
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