Sources say Hyundai Asan is seeking permission from the Unification Ministry for the head of Hyundai Group to visit North Korea next month.

The purpose of the visit is to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the launch of tours to the North's Mount Geumgang. 

South Korean tours to Geumgang were suspended in 2008 after North Korean forces shot an unarmed South Korean housewife in the back-- an act for which Pyongyang has never apologized.

If Seoul approves the request, Hyundai Group Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun would visit the North for a third time this year and possibly discuss the resumption of Geumgang tours from South Korea.

Last month in Pyongyang, President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un agreed in principle to resume Geumgang operations once certain conditions are met.