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What to watch for today
Argentina discusses a loan with the IMF. Economy minister Nicolás Dujovne is due to meet with fund chief Christine Lagarde in Washington to discuss a financial aid package, as the country strains under severe market turbulence. The country paid off a previous bailout to the IMF in 2006 and subsequently cut ties with the institution.
The White House hosts a summit on the future of AI. Senior government officials will meet with representatives from tech giants—including Alphabet, Amazon, Facebook, and Microsoft—to discuss innovation in the industry, as well as how to balance regulation with the risk of robots running amok.
The Bank of England meets. The UK’s central bank is expected to leave interest rates alone amid disappointing economic data, a surprise move from two weeks back (paywall) when markets expected a small rate hike.
While you were sleeping
Donald Trump welcomed home US prisoners released by North Korea. The president met the three men as they landed in Maryland in the early hours of Thursday morning. Pyongyang agreed to the release ahead of Kim Jong-un’s upcoming meeting with Trump. The location for the summit is rumored to be Singapore, but will be confirmed in the coming days.
Israel retaliated after Iranian missile strikes. Israel says missile strikes hit all of Iran’s infrastructure in Syria, including weapon depots, logistics sites, and intelligence centers, in response to an attack yesterday on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. “If it rains in Israel, it will pour in Iran,” said Israel’s defense minister.
Royal Bank of Scotland agreed to pay nearly $5 billion to end a subprime mortgage probe. The settlement with the US Justice Department covers misdeeds from 2005 to 2007. Investors feared a bigger penalty, so shares in the bailed-out British bank, which is still majority-owned by the government, rose on the news.
The Chinese tycoon who bought the Waldorf Astoria was sentenced to prison. Wu Xiaohui, former chairman of insurance group Anbang, was sentenced to 18 years and fined $1.65 billion by a Chinese court for fraud and abuse of power. China’s insurance regulator seized control of the conglomerate in February.
Malaysia’s opposition party won a shocking victory. The nation’s 92-year-old former leader, Mahathir Mohamad, led a coalition of opposition parties to win a majority of parliamentary seats, ousting prime minister Najib Razak and ending the Barisan Nasional coalition’s 60-year grip on power.
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Matters of debate
New language policies show how far Taiwan has come since Chinese rule. Making indigenous Taiwanese a national language honors a pluralistic society.
The market still needs Libor. The unsecured rate that banks charge each other is supposed to be replaced, but it might be smart to keep using it (paywall).
The high seas should be closed to fishing. Managing fishing rights in exclusive economic zones will help rebuild fish stocks, and help underdeveloped coastal nations.
Surprising discoveries
Bears can’t just pop out for ice cream. A Canadian zoo faces fines for taking a bear to Dairy Queen, and then posting about it on social media.
South Korea is cracking down on walking-and-texting. It’s developing a program that locks people’s devices after detecting that they’ve been walking for more than five steps while using their phones.
Dr. Dre lost a trademark battle with a gynecologist. The rap legend argued that Dr. Drai would cause confusion among fans, but a judge ruled in favor of the actual doctor.
Scotland’s favorite drink is banned from Trump’s local golf course. Irn-Bru, the bright orange fizzy drink, won’t be served anymore at Turnberry as staff fear spills would stain carpets.
The oldest virus ever found is a sexually transmitted infection. Researchers stumbled across fragments of DNA from hepatitis B dating back nearly 4,500 years.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, carpet cleaner, and ursine Instagram accounts 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 Sam Rigby and edited by Jason Karaian.