Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Mike Pompeo smooths feathers in South Korea. The US secretary of state will try to explain to president Moon Jae-in’s government exactly what Donald Trump promised Kim Jong Un in Singapore. Seoul and the US military were reportedly caught unaware by Trump’s pledge to halt joint military exercises.
The Fed hikes interest rates. Investors are almost unanimous in expecting a higher benchmark rate from the US Federal Reserve. Eyes will be peeled for an update to the central bank’s policy statement, which could signal its broader macroeconomic outlook and propensity for ending the current rate-hike cycle.
FIFA decides where to hold the 2026 World Cup. There are only two candidates: Morocco and a joint bid by the US, Mexico, and Canada. The previous vote in 2010, which set this year’s tournament in Russia and the 2022 event in Qatar, was beset by controversies of bribery and vote-rigging.
While you were sleeping
A US judge cleared AT&T’s Time Warner acquisition. Judge Richard Leon ruled that the $85.4 billion deal did not violate antitrust regulations. The decision clears the way for another media bidding war, as Comcast tries to top Disney’s $54 billion bid to buy 21st Century Fox.
Toyota agreed to invest $1 billion in Grab. The investment in Southeast Asia’s biggest ride-hailing service is the largest ever by an auto maker in the sector, according to Singapore-based Grab. Grab said the money would be used, among other things, to further develop its services such as food delivery and payments.
Tesla is laying off 9% of its workforce. The company said it would ax thousands of employees in a restructuring. Musk said that the cuts would not affect factory workers and “production associates” crucial to manufacturing the Model 3 and Tesla’s hope of turning an annual profit for the first time in 2018.
Macedonia will change its name. Prime minister Zoran Zaev agreed to start calling his country North Macedonia, after more than two decades of diplomatic brawling with Greece, which has a region of the same name. In return, Greece agreed stop blocking its attempts to join NATO and the EU.
Quartz Obsession interlude
Ana Campoy and Youyou Zhou on Hurricane Maria’s true death toll, according to Puerto Ricans. “Nearly nine months after Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico, nobody knows how many people died because of it. Estimates range from the government’s official toll of 64—broadly seen as a gross undercount—to Harvard University researchers’ 4,645, an extrapolation that some say is wildly inflated.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Apple killed fun. Once a pioneer of colorful designs, the company is now a bastion of boring lines and cold elegance.
The World Cup is for citizens of the world. The tournament is the perfect manifestation (paywall) of how one can at once be a proud representative of a country while being utterly global.
The new rainbow flag is a design disaster. An attempt to appease every community seeking representation results in an inclusive, but mediocre product.
Surprising discoveries
Louboutin’s red soles are ripoff-proof. An EU court ruled the color scheme belongs exclusively to the French designer.
Russians are being taught how to smile. Workers are training to be more welcoming to World Cup tourists.
Japanese cicadas turned the tables on cordyceps. The bug puts the zombie-making fungi to work to help digest its food.
American toddlers eat an alarming amount of sugar. Their sugar intake is almost as high as the recommended maximum for adults.
Facebook knows exactly how many times you’ve stalked your ex. You can delete any search query you want, but it will take about six months to completely disappear.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, deleted Facebook searches, and smiling Russians 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 Isabella Steger and edited by Alice Truong.