New York Judge Orders Redrawing of GOP-Held Congressional District 
SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates 
OpenAI Expands Enterprise AI Strategy With Major Hiring Push Ahead of New Business Offering 
RBI Holds Repo Rate at 5.25% as India’s Growth Outlook Strengthens After U.S. Trade Deal 
Silver Prices Plunge in Asian Trade as Dollar Strength Triggers Fresh Precious Metals Sell-Off 
China Extends Gold Buying Streak as Reserves Surge Despite Volatile Prices 
CK Hutchison Launches Arbitration After Panama Court Revokes Canal Port Licences 
Panama Supreme Court Voids CK Hutchison Port Concessions, Raising Geopolitical and Trade Concerns 
American Airlines CEO to Meet Pilots Union Amid Storm Response and Financial Concerns 
Tencent Shares Slide After WeChat Restricts YuanBao AI Promotional Links 
Thailand Inflation Remains Negative for 10th Straight Month in January 
Russian Stocks End Mixed as MOEX Index Closes Flat Amid Commodity Strength 
Jerome Powell Attends Supreme Court Hearing on Trump Effort to Fire Fed Governor, Calling It Historic 
Alphabet’s Massive AI Spending Surge Signals Confidence in Google’s Growth Engine 
Meta Faces Lawsuit Over Alleged Approval of AI Chatbots Allowing Sexual Interactions With Minors 
U.S. Lawmakers to Review Unredacted Jeffrey Epstein DOJ Files Starting Monday 
FDA Targets Hims & Hers Over $49 Weight-Loss Pill, Raising Legal and Safety Concerns 
South Korean authorities have arrested 34 people and referred 529 more to prosecution into allegations that they profited from insider information as public employees and officials in a land speculation scandal.
The public employees and officials, including a former head of a local government and a local assembly member, were said to have purchased land set for development before the plans were announced publicly.
There were cases and over 2,800 people involved, including employees of state-run Korea Land and Housing, local civil servants, and their families.
Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said he felt "extremely embarrassed" about the allegations in apologizing to the public for the scandal.
The government had so far seized 90.8 billion won in illicit gains from speculative investments.
The scandal has infuriated the South Koreans now dealing with sky-high real estate prices that have put housing out of reach for many of them.
The investigation is still ongoing.
The initial scandal involved at least ten employees of Korea Land and Housing who bought land at a low price in an area set for building 70,000 new homes before development plans were made public.
Condominium prices in Seoul have soared 80 percent since Moon took office four years ago, according to KB Kookmin Bank.
