Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Tim Cook talks tariffs with Donald Trump. The Apple CEO will meet the president in the White House today to discuss trade tensions between the US and China, where Apple has the bulk of its production.
Facebook and Twitter post earnings. Investors are keen to see if Facebook’s ad inventory and prices have taken a hit from the Cambridge Analytica scandal. They’ll also be watching to see how Twitter’s user base is growing, and whether ongoing cost-cutting efforts at the company are bearing fruit.
Paypal and Ebay unveil their results. PayPal suffered a blow in January, when its longtime partner eBay opted to change to a new payments provider, but is still expected to post solid first-quarter profit today. eBay is expected to report steady revenue growth in the quarter.
While you were sleeping
A federal judge ordered Trump to reopen the DACA program. The judge said the White House’s attempt to end the Dreamers immigration program was “arbitrary and capricious,” and delayed the ruling on the program by 90 days to allow for the administration to make its case again to end the program.
The Trumps hosted a state dinner for Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron. During an intense day, the presidents discussed the Iran nuclear agreement—Trump called it “insane” but may be considering Macron’s proposal to negotiate a “new deal.” They dined with 150 guests, including former secretary of state Henry Kissinger and Tim Cook.
Japan’s Takeda Pharmaceutical sweetened the takeover offer for Shire. The UK-based rare-disease drugmaker said it would consider the increased offer of $64 billion, and extend the deadline to May 8. If it goes ahead, this could be the biggest drug company acquisition of the year.
Trump’s nominee for ambassador to Australia is going to South Korea instead. Admiral Harry Harris won’t take up the post in Canberra, which has been vacant for 18 months. The vacant position in Seoul is seen as a more urgent one to fill, given the flurry of diplomatic activity on the Korean peninsula.
Lloyds battled on. The London-based lender’s profit jumped 23% to £1.6 billion ($2.2 billion) in the quarter from the same time a year ago. However, it’s bracing for a further £90 million in compensation costs for mis-selling payment protection insurance, which is costing the bank almost £19 billion in total.
Quartz obsession interlude
Katherine Foley on the bizarre holes NASA found in Arctic sea ice. “Harp and ring seals have been known to make these kinds of holes in thinner Arctic sea ice, and then use those holes repeatedly to come up for air. For that theory to hold, there needs to be a good explanation for why the sea ice in this particular spot is thin enough for the seals to break through.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
A respectful workplace is better than a nice one. Too much emphasis on niceness leads to poor decision-making and low levels of creativity.
Crazy Rich Asians still isn’t diverse enough. The movie, set largely in Singapore, has a mixed-race male lead and a conspicuous lack of dark-skinned actors.
Lack of competition is what’s really killing privacy. Facebook users have nowhere to go if they’re fed up with data intrusions.
Surprising discoveries
Kim Jong-un is eating rösti at the inter-Korean summit. The North Korean leader will be served the potato dish in a nod to his childhood years in Switzerland.
There are fewer female Republican senators than those who are named John. This is despite the fact (paywall) that women make up half the US population and just 3.3% of people are named John.
The shadow of a boxing man could protect Japanese women living alone. The “Man on the Curtain” app projects moving shadows onto windows to deter potential intruders.
Police went to a funeral home to unlock a smartphone. Experts say the decision to use a dead man’s finger was legal.
Chinese tech companies are hiring women to help ease male coders’ stress. The “programmer motivators” talk to male colleagues and give them massages (paywall).
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, rösti, and deterrent shadows 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 by Jill Petzinger and edited by Lianna Brinded.