South Korea on Thursday became the first country outside the United States to punish Volkswagen AG on the basis of its own emissions tests, slapping the German automaker with a record fine and ordering a recall of 125,522 vehicles.<br />The environment ministry said it ordered Volkswagen Korea to submit a recall plan by Jan. 6, 2016, after its own testing showed Europe's biggest auto manufacturer manipulated devices that record diesel emissions in vehicles with older engines.<br />It also fined Volkswagen Korea 14.1 billion won , the steepest financial penalty imposed on an automaker in Asia's fourth-biggest economy, a decision that could scare some buyers off imported cars generally.
