Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
India’s GDP data. The economy is expected to post 7% growth in the third quarter, up from 6.3% in the previous quarter, as the manufacturing and construction sectors add to the country’s recovery.
Apple hands over operation of its Chinese iCloud servers. The iPhone maker is partnering with Guizhou-Cloud Big Data Industry Development Co., owned by the provincial government, to comply with strict new rules for foreign tech companies. Apple says it will maintain control of users’ encryption keys, but privacy groups are leery.
While you were sleeping
Fed chair Jay Powell vowed to stay the course. The head of the US central bank made his debut before Congress, telling lawmakers that he would keep the economy from overheating by gradually raising interest rates. Investors sold off stocks and boosted interest rate yields on signals that the Fed could hike rates four times this year.
German cities got the green light to ban diesel cars. A federal court in Leipzig ruled that diesel vehicles that emit unsafe levels of nitrogen oxide could be phased out of city centers without any financial compensation for car owners. The ban could be implemented in up to 70 towns and cities, and affect some 12 million vehicles.
North Korea has been shipping chemical weapons materials to Syria. A United Nations report (paywall) found that Kim Jong-un’s regime has been shipping acid-resistant tiles, valves, and thermometers to Damascus in exchange for cash to fund its missile program. Separately, a Russian-ordered cease-fire in a rebel-held area, which suffered a chlorine gas attack on Sunday, failed to evacuate any civilians.
Donald Trump tapped his Facebook strategist to run his 2020 campaign. Brad Parscale has been hailed as a “tech genius” for using the social media network’s sophisticated advertising tools, though he was also accused of using fake news to suppress minority voting.
Jared Kushner lost access to top secret documents. Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser will no longer receive highly classified briefings until he gets a permanent clearance. Chief of staff John Kelly is restricting interim clearances as he tries to impose discipline in the White House.
Quartz obsession interlude
Annalisa Merelli on the folly of billionaires trying to fix poverty: “America’s poor are deeply isolated and kept at a distance not just from the very rich, but from the moderately comfortable. US inequality isn’t a simple divide between urban and rural; even poor people who live and work next door are rendered invisible by the structure of American life.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
“Trending content” needs to die. Online systems that don’t account for quality are too easy to manipulate.
China’s Anbang takeover is a “too big to fail” moment. The troubled financial firm would cause chaos (paywall) if it couldn’t repay investors.
Ride-sharing increases congestion. Instead of creating efficiencies, Uber and Lyft are putting more cars on the street.
Surprising discoveries
Quebec doctors are turning down raises. More than 250 physicians have called for the provincial government to raise pay for nurses, orderlies, and other medical staff instead.
Softbank’s board thinks its CEO’s investments have gotten out of control. Masayoshi Son has showered $37 billion on more than 40 tech companies in the last year alone.
Japan’s “Mario Kart” tours could be nearing the finish. A hit and run go-karter was part of a group tour playing a dangerous game on congested streets in Tokyo.
Bitcoin’s self-styled inventor has been accused of stealing $5 billion. The family of Craig Wright’s deceased business partner says Wright forged contracts to obtain thousands of bitcoins.
An Egyptian pop star was sentenced to jail for insulting the Nile. Sherine Abdel-Wahab made an offhand comment that the river contains parasites and people should “drink Evian instead.”
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, magnanimous doctors, and go karts to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android. Today’s Daily Brief was written and edited by Susan Howson and Adam Pasick.