NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Amazon Eye Massive OpenAI Investment Amid $100B Funding Push 
SpaceX Seeks FCC Approval for Massive Solar-Powered Satellite Network to Support AI Data Centers 
South Korea Industry Minister Heads to Washington Amid U.S. Tariff Hike Concerns 
Panama Supreme Court Voids Hong Kong Firm’s Panama Canal Port Contracts Over Constitutional Violations 
U.S. Eases Venezuela Oil Sanctions to Boost American Investment After Maduro Ouster 
Apple Earnings Beat Expectations as iPhone Sales Surge to Four-Year High 
U.S. Government Faces Brief Shutdown as Congress Delays Funding Deal 
Panama Supreme Court Voids CK Hutchison Port Concessions, Raising Geopolitical and Trade Concerns 
Why Trump’s new pick for Fed chair hit gold and silver markets – for good reasons 
Meta Stock Surges After Q4 2025 Earnings Beat and Strong Q1 2026 Revenue Outlook Despite Higher Capex 
Nvidia Confirms Major OpenAI Investment Amid AI Funding Race 
Elon Musk’s Empire: SpaceX, Tesla, and xAI Merger Talks Spark Investor Debate 
Apple Faces Margin Pressure as Memory Chip Prices Surge Amid AI Boom 
South Korea Exports Surge in January on AI Chip Demand, Marking Fastest Growth in 4.5 Years 
U.S.–Venezuela Relations Show Signs of Thaw as Top Envoy Visits Caracas 
Saks Global to End Saks on Amazon Partnership Amid Bankruptcy Restructuring 
Lotte Group is set to acquire Ministop Korea after it has become the preferred bidder, beating Shinsegae in the process. The South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Songpa-gu, Seoul proposed a ₩300 billion or around $251.7 million deal and the convenience store chain picked it as the preferred bidder.
Shinsege Group was also on the list of bidders to buy Ministop Korea and for its bid, it has become rivals again with its leading competitor in the retail industry which is the Lotte Group. In the end, Lotte emerged as the winner in the race to acquire the fifth largest convenience store chain in South Korea.
According to The Korea Economic Daily, the acquisition will help Lotte compete against the leading convenience store brands in the country. It was reported that it was Aeon Co., a retail and financial services group based in Japan and Ministop Korea’s manager for the sale, Samil PwC, that selected Lotte as a final preferred bidder.
Both Aeon and Samil PwC are set to send a notification about its decision within this week. Lotte Group will be given the right to a 100% stake in Ministop Korea.
Lotte was said to have posted the highest bid and it was far higher compared to the other bid amounts. It defeated Shinsegae as well as a consortium created by Anchor Equity Partners and Nepstone Holdings Co. that were said to have proposed around ₩200 billion each.
It was learned that Lotte joined the bidding via Korea Seven that operates the 7-Eleven convenience store chain. On the other hand, Shinsegae entered the bidding race through its E-Mart 24 store chain.
Korea Joongang Daily noted that Lotte and Shinsegae also competed for the acquisition of eBay Korea and it was the former that won the deal as Emart won in the bidding. With this, the company has become the second-biggest e-commerce player in the country, rising from its previous fifth position.
Thus, with Ministop Korea being added to its portfolio soon, Lotte is also set to rise in the ranking in the convenience store industry. Moreover, the company is expected to make use of Ministop Korea’s stores as distribution hubs to improve last-mile delivery services.
