Good morning Quartz readers!
What to watch for today:
China rich list. China’s economy may be cooling, but its wealthiest people keep getting richer. Forbes releases its annual list of China’s wealthiest people.
JPMorgan Chase earnings. The largest US bank by assets reports earnings for the third quarter, a bellwether for the US financial sector’s health. Analysts expect revenue to rise to $24 billion and earnings per share of $1.22.
Euro zone manufacturing. Industrial production numbers from the euro zone for August will offer guidance on how hard manufacturers are getting hit by the ongoing debt crisis and recession.
While you were sleeping:
Coca-Cola’s Greek bottler moves out. The biggest Coke bottler in Greece makes up about one-fifth of Athens’ stock market. But with ratings agencies punishing it for its domicile, it now plans to move to Switzerland and to relist in London.
Russia won’t renew nuclear pact. The Kremlin says it will no longer allow a 20-year-old US program to secure and dismantle weapons of mass destruction in former Soviet states including Georgia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan—the latest in a series of steps Russia has taken to distance itself from the US.
Recovery watch: US unemployment down, but trade gap up. Weekly jobless claims fell to their lowest level since 2008, but a widening trade deficit suggested those gains may be temporary, as slowing global growth slashed US exports.
Blankfein, Simpson & Bowles? A new voice joined the chorus warning that the looming US fiscal cliff could end any shot at recovery, with Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein appearing alongside former US Senators Alan Simpson and Erskine Bowles in a nearly 40-minute interview on CNBC.
Quartz obsession interlude:
Euro Crunch. Greece lost 1,000 jobs a day in the year that ended in July, pushing total unemployment to a new high of 25%. Quartz’s Ritchie King shows the carnage.
Matters of debate:
Who needs bank loans when you can sell bonds? Big businesses will borrow more money on bond markets than from banks this year, an Ernst & Young report finds.
Oil’s LIBOR? French oil giant Total makes a rare open attack on energy pricing company Platts, accusing it of an erratic and inaccurate oil-pricing system.
PC sales will be lower this year for the first time in 11 years. The industry is blaming the global economy for the downturn. But then why are tablet sales exploding?
Now’s a good time to buy European businesses. An investor puts his money where his mouth is.
Surprising discoveries:
A planet twice the size of earth was discovered orbiting in the constellation of Cancer. And it’s largely made of diamond.
The way you eat your eggs says something about your personality. Scientists find statistical evidence suggesting that boiled-egg eaters are disorganized, poached eggers are outgoing and fried-egg aficionados have a high sex drive.
Best wishes from Quartz for a productive day. Please send any news, queries, and European asset purchases to hi@qz.com. We’ll be back in your inbox on Monday.