Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
China’s pharmaceutical firms eye Cardinal Health. Bidding for the US drug distributor’s China unit begins today, and could fetch up to $1.5 billion. Cardinal’s exit comes ahead of Chinese drug distribution reform that the US company fears could slow growth.
Boris Johnson goes to Tokyo. The UK foreign minister will meet with his counterpart Fumio Kishida to discuss bilateral ties between the nations. Johnson will also talk security, post-Brexit, and the Olympics as Tokyo prepares to host the 2020 games.
General Electric bids farewell to Jeffrey Immelt. The longtime CEO will oversee his last quarterly earnings release alongside his replacement John Flannery (paywall), who may provide some clues about the future of the industrial conglomerate.
While you were sleeping
The Trump-Russia probe expanded to include the president’s business activities. Special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation is now looking at purchases of Trump apartment buildings and other properties, as well as the Miss Universe pageant in Moscow, Bloomberg reported. The inquiry began with a money laundering investigation by former US attorney Preet Bhahara, who was fired by Trump earlier this year.
ExxonMobil was fined for violating sanctions on Russia. The US Treasury Department imposed a $2 million penalty on the oil company for signing several deals with Igor Sechin, the blacklisted head of Russia’s largest oil company. US secretary of state Rex Tillerson was Exxon’s chief executive at the time.
The European Central Bank kept its powder dry. Despite robust eurozone recovery, Mario Draghi said policy makers “aren’t there yet” when it comes to unwinding the ECB’s massive bond-buying program. Draghi’s comments are a pivot from last month (paywall), when he suggested the ECB may begin reducing the stimulus.
US and Dutch cops shut down two big darknet markets. The takedown of AlphaBay had already been disclosed, but authorities revealed they were secretly controlling a second site, Hansa Market, to ensnare fugitive buyers and sellers of opioid drugs and other contraband. A Dutch prosecutor said that running Hansa for several weeks “turned out to be a lot of work.”
O.J Simpson was granted parole. The 70-year-old former football star, who was acquitted of double murder charges in 1995, has been imprisoned for nine years on armed robbery and kidnapping convictions. He will be freed from a Nevada prison in October.
Quartz obsession interlude
Katherine Foley on a superbug’s battle to the death with the latest antibiotic. “There is a growing Resistance. I heard a story from another Staph who said she faced the Penicillin, and that it couldn’t hurt her. She said she stared it square in its face, and although it tried to kill her, she could repair herself quickly.” Read more here.
Markets haiku
Amazon’s Sears deal: / An A student shares its notes / with retail’s class clown
Matters of debate
Sexual harassment usually indicates other unethical corporate behaviours. Perpetrators feel entitled to other people’s property, physically and financially.
The Islamic State is preparing for guerilla warfare. After a hard-fought battle to regain control of Mosul, Iraqi security forces have “tougher days coming.”
A low-end car could be more disruptive than a Tesla. French automaker Renault’s $4000 Kwid is making car ownership more accessible in India.
Surprising discoveries
Cold brew is perking up the coffee bean market. The method requires twice as much coffee as regular joe.
Robots are helping travelers at South Korea’s largest airport. They escort travelers to gates and help the cleaning staff sweep the floors.
Brazil has a booming market in ankle monitors. A corruption crackdown has authorities scrambling for solutions to monitor inmates beyond prison walls.
It may cost $7 trillion a year to remove carbon dioxide from the air. That’s the price of “negative emissions” technologies to bring atmospheric carbon back to pre-industrial levels.
McDonald’s new line of clothing isn’t terrible. The flip flops, sweatsuits, and other swag will be bundled with UberEats deliveries.
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