South Korea’s Weak Won Struggles as Retail Investors Pour Money Into U.S. Stocks 
The Beauty Beneath the Expressway: A Journey from Self to Service 
Dollar Steady as Fed Nomination and Japanese Election Shape Currency Markets 
Palantir Stock Jumps After Strong Q4 Earnings Beat and Upbeat 2026 Revenue Forecast 
Sam Altman Reaffirms OpenAI’s Long-Term Commitment to NVIDIA Amid Chip Report 
Paul Atkins Emphasizes Global Regulatory Cooperation at Fintech Conference 
Thailand Inflation Remains Negative for 10th Straight Month in January 
SoftBank and Intel Partner to Develop Next-Generation Memory Chips for AI Data Centers 
TSMC Eyes 3nm Chip Production in Japan with $17 Billion Kumamoto Investment 
Nvidia Nears $20 Billion OpenAI Investment as AI Funding Race Intensifies 
U.S. Stock Futures Edge Higher as Tech Rout Deepens on AI Concerns and Earnings 
Dollar Steadies Ahead of ECB and BoE Decisions as Markets Turn Risk-Off 
Sony Q3 Profit Jumps on Gaming and Image Sensors, Full-Year Outlook Raised 
Office design isn’t keeping up with post-COVID work styles - here’s what workers really want 
Instagram Outage Disrupts Thousands of U.S. Users 
McDonald’s Korea will adopt an automatic tolling system dubbed Hi-Pass allows drivers to pay tolls without having to stop at toll booths on major expressways for its drive-thru (DT) service.
The South Korean unit of McDonald’s signed a deal with Korea Expressway Corp., Shinhan Card Co., and KIS Information & Communication Inc. to introduce the DT Hi-Pass system on its DT platform.
With the Hi-Pass system installed in a vehicle, payments by a person who orders food through a drive-thru will be automatically made.
The system will be trialed at two South Korean restaurants starting on Dec. 20 before expanding to around 30 restaurants across the country within the first half of next year.
