Global PC Makers Eye Chinese Memory Chip Suppliers Amid Ongoing Supply Crunch 
Vietnam’s Trade Surplus With US Jumps as Exports Surge and China Imports Hit Record 
Gold Prices Slide Below $5,000 as Strong Dollar and Central Bank Outlook Weigh on Metals 
Asian Stocks Slip as Tech Rout Deepens, Japan Steadies Ahead of Election 
Instagram Outage Disrupts Thousands of U.S. Users 
Baidu Approves $5 Billion Share Buyback and Plans First-Ever Dividend in 2026 
FDA Targets Hims & Hers Over $49 Weight-Loss Pill, Raising Legal and Safety Concerns 
Trump Signs Executive Order Threatening 25% Tariffs on Countries Trading With Iran 
OpenAI Expands Enterprise AI Strategy With Major Hiring Push Ahead of New Business Offering 
Once Upon a Farm Raises Nearly $198 Million in IPO, Valued at Over $724 Million 
Nvidia, ByteDance, and the U.S.-China AI Chip Standoff Over H200 Exports 
Japanese Pharmaceutical Stocks Slide as TrumpRx.gov Launch Sparks Market Concerns 
SpaceX Pushes for Early Stock Index Inclusion Ahead of Potential Record-Breaking IPO 
Russian Stocks End Mixed as MOEX Index Closes Flat Amid Commodity Strength 
South Africa Eyes ECB Repo Lines as Inflation Eases and Rate Cuts Loom 
South Korea’s Weak Won Struggles as Retail Investors Pour Money Into U.S. Stocks 
TrumpRx Website Launches to Offer Discounted Prescription Drugs for Cash-Paying Americans 
Mercedes Benz was fined by South Korea's antitrust regulator on Monday, Feb 7. The German luxury automotive company must pay a ₩20.2 billion or $16.9 million penalty due to emission violations.
According to Reuters, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) made the decision to serve the fine to the Korean unit of Mercedes Benz because it was found to have tampered with pollution devices. It was reported that the automaker installed illegal software in some of its units, and this was done to make them perform at lower levels in normal driving conditions compared to during certification tests.
The KFTC said that Mercedes Benz Korea posted false ads related to the gas emissions of its diesel passenger vehicles. It was discovered that 15 of the brand's vehicle models had illegal software installed in them.
"It is meaningful to impose sanctions against the country's No.1 imported car sales operator for obstructing consumers' rational purchase choices with false and deceptive advertisements about its emission reduction performance even after the Dieselgate scandal," the Korean antitrust watchdog said in a statement.
Moreover, Mercedes Benz Korea was also said to have falsely claimed that their vehicles' emissions stay at a minimum level. The carmaker advertised that some of its diesel models have the capability of reducing 90% of nitrogen oxide emissions which is the primary cause of fine dust, but the KFTC said that this is not true.
The Fair Trade Commission also said that the car company claimed the vehicles' emissions conform to the Euro 6 standards between the years August 2013 and December 2016. These claims were said to have been extensively posted on Mercedes Benz's magazines, catalogs, brochures, and even inside the cars.
The claims are different from what KFTC had discovered. The nation's regulator stated the company's selective catalytic reduction systems that can help lower emissions have excessively deteriorated just after 30 minutes of driving. Plus, the vehicles emitted up to 14 times more nitrogen oxide than what the Korean environmental regulations allow.
The Korea Herald reported that Mercedes Benz Korea contradicted the findings and said that 90% of its vehicles are mostly driven for under 30 minutes in the country. The company added that the "SCR reduces 90 percent of nitrogen oxide" phrase that appears in their ads is a commonly used phrase in the vehicle industry and academia.
