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Fast-food chains are losing their breakfast customers to an unlikely source: gas stations and convenience stores. Turns out, more and more Americans are getting their morning start by heading to the pump, or their local 7-Eleven, as consumershit with skyrocketing prices, inflation, and an overall higher cost of livingare tightening their spending and eating out less. New data from market research firm Circana found visits to “food-forward convenience stores” increased a whopping 9% for the quarter ending in July, while fast-food restaurants like McDonalds saw a 1% increase in in-store morning traffic for that same period, as reported by CNBC. “Food-forward convenience stores” include Pennsylvania-based Wawa, whose coffee bars and pre-made breakfast sandwich are a major draw in the MidAtlantic region, and Caseys General Store in the Midwest; both of whom are expanding their food offerings, per CNBC. [Photo: Jeffrey Greenberg/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images] At the same time, 7-Eleven’s Japanese parent company Seven & i Holdings is betting big on Japanese-style convenience storesknown for their fresh prepared food including their popular egg sandwicheswith a five-year, $13 billion campaign to add 1,000 Japanese-style in-store restaurants in the U.S. with quicker service, and fresher food, according to The New York Times. Whether its hot food or cold food or any kind of food, we have to lean into how we improve the quality and the experience,” Seven & i Holdings CEO Stephen Dacustold the Times. “Thats what Japan does extraordinarily well. Dacustold, a former Walmart executive, who started as CEO of 7-Eleven’s parent company just three months ago, is leading the charge. In the Midwest, Kwik Trip has also been “upping its game for years with fresh food options” on top of the hot dogs and breakfast sandwiches, according to Catherine Roberts, senior business editor at The Minnesota Star Tribune.
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E-Commerce
Corrective lenses and eye surgery are common treatments for those who are farsighted (have difficulty seeing close up). However, a new, noninvasive approach could soon be the preferred treatment and even make reading glasses obsolete. The results of a new study were presented on Sunday at the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS) in Copenhagen. The research, which involved 766 patients who were an average age of 55, found that subjects had positive results after using special eyedrops, formulated to improve vision.The eye drops were developed by the late Dr. Jorge Benozzi, whose daughter, Dr. Giovanna Benozzi, now continues his work as the director of the Centre for Advanced Research for Presbyopia in Buenos Aires. The drops contain pilocarpine, “a drug that constricts the pupils and contracts the ciliary muscle, which is a muscle controlling the eye’s accommodation for seeing objects at varying distances,” as well as the ingredient diclofenac, “a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that reduces inflammation and the discomfort that pilocarpine often causes.” Participants received one of three doses of the medication, with varying concentrations of diclofenac (1%, 2%, and 3%). Most participants, who suffered from farsightedness, could read two to three additional lines on the Jaeger eye chart used for testing sight after using the drops. Dr. Benozzi said, per Science Daily, that the way patients responded to the treatments depended on the severity of their condition. “Patients with less severe presbyopia responded best to 1% concentrations, while those with more advanced presbyopia required higher 2% or 3% concentrations to achieve significant visual improvement.” Still, the drops improved sight, not just for short-range vision, but at all distances. Our most significant result showed rapid and sustained improvements in near vision for all three concentrations,” Benozzi said. “One hour after having the first drops, patients had an average improvement of 3.45 Jaeger lines [the measurement used for testing near visual acuity].” The improvement was found for up to two years. Benozzi added, Impressively, 99% of 148 patients in the 1% pilocarpine group reached optimal near vision and were able to read two or more extra lines. However, the results of the other groups were positive, too: 69% of the 2% group were able to read three or more extra lines; 84% of the 3% group could do the same. There were some notable side effects, including temporary dim vision, eye irritation, and headaches. However, Benozzi said the medication was “well-tolerated” and could soon be a viable alternative to surgery and corrective lenses for some. “It significantly reduces dependence on reading glasses, providing a convenient, non-invasive option for patients, although these eye drops may not eliminate the need for glasses in all individuals,” Benozzi said.
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E-Commerce
South Korea‘s negotiations with the U.S. on a trade deal to lower tariffs have stalled amid concerns over the foreign exchange implications of a $350 billion investment fund, part of an agreement reached with President Donald Trump in July. What has Japan agreed to? South Korean officials, who had argued that the package would mostly comprise loans and guarantees with limited direct investment, said last week they could not accept terms similar to those of a $550 billion investment package finalised this month by Japan. Tokyo agreed to transfer money within 45 days after the U.S. selects a project, and that available free cash flows from investments would be split evenly until they reached an allocated amount, after which 90% would go to the U.S. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Thursday that there would be no flexibility for Seoul. “The Japanese signed the contract. The Koreans either accept that deal or pay the tariffs. Black and white, pay the tariffs or accept the deal.” How is South Korea’s situation different from Japan? Since South Korea’s deal was announced in late July, there have been concerns among market participants that the resulting dollar demand will overwhelm the domestic currency market, depressing the won. Since suffering traumatic capital flight during a financial crisis in the late 1990s, South Korea has retained a tight grip on its currency market. It started opening it to foreigners last year but there is still no offshore market to trade the won. The daily average global won trade stood at $142 billion in 2022, compared with $1.25 trillion for the Japanese yen, according to a triennial survey by the Bank for International Settlements. The won accounted for 2% of global market share, against 17% for the yen. Why is it South Korea is particularly worried? The won hit a 15-year low at the end of last year at around 1,476 to the dollar and now stands around 1,390. Market participants say the $40 billion needed by the state pension fund every year for its overseas investments is already a heavy burden on the currency. Citi estimated that the investment package would generate dollar demand of around $100 billion each year from 2026 to 2028. South Korea’s economy is much smaller than Japan’s. It had a current account surplus of $99 billion last year, compared with Japan’s surplus of nearly $200 billion, and central bank foreign reserves of $416 billion in August, compared with Japan’s $1.3 trillion. How is South Korea trying to mitigate the impact? The idea of seeking a foreign exchange swap line with the U.S. was raised publicly by Presidential Policy Secretary Kim Yong-beom last week, when he said the yen’s status as a key international currency and an unlimited swap line between Japan and the U.S. put Tokyo in a stronger position. Finance Minister Koo said last week there would be an announcement on foreign currency when tariff negotiations conclude and he told Reuters on Monday he thought the U.S. would “contemplate” a currency swap line, after a local media outlet said the government had passed the request to the U.S. Which countries have FX swap lines with the US? The U.S. Federal Reserve has standing swap line arrangements with the central banks of Canada, Britain, Japan, the European Union, and Switzerland. It established temporary swap lines of $60 billion each with the Bank of Korea and eight other central banks in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. After the swap line expired in December 2021, the Fed offered the Bank of Korea a safety net of $60 billion through repurchase agreements, enabling it to borrow dollars with its holdings of U.S. Treasuries as collateral. Jihoon Lee and Yena Park, Reuters
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