Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
North Korea hosts a three-day reunion of families separated by the Korean War. About 200 South Koreans started the journey across the border Monday morning to meet with family members. For many of the families, this will be the first time they’ve seen each other since the 1950-53 war—and it likely will be the last.
Greece’s bailout ends. The austerity-ridden country formally exits its third bailout program, after receiving more than €300 billion ($342 billion) over eight years from European lenders. Prime minister Alexis Tsipras described the final bailout loan as the “last act in the drama” and proclaimed a “new page” of growth—even though the country still faces severe economic challenges (paywall).
Venezuela removes zeroes from its banknotes. The new currency, known as the sovereign bolivar, will replace the strong bolivar and will be anchored to Venezuela’s cryptocurrency, the petro. Each petro is worth about $60, based on the price of a barrel of Venezuelan oil—around 3,600 sovereign bolivars, a significant devaluation in a country battling hyperinflation.
A ceasefire between the Taliban and the Afghan government is set to begin. Afghan president Ashraf Ghani called for a three-month conditional truce ahead of the Eid al-Adha holiday, following a bloody week of fighting in the central city of Ghazni. The Taliban hasn’t publicly responded to the offer yet.
The Trump administration begins hearings on anti-China tariffs. The US trade representative will hear the views of some 370 witnesses (paywall) this week on whether to slap tariffs on an additional $200 billion worth of Chinese goods. Levies on $34 billion of imports from China went into effect in early July.
Over the weekend
Kofi Annan passed away at 80. The former United Nations secretary-general and Nobel Peace Prize winner died Saturday after a short illness. One of his landmark proposals led to the creation of the Millennium Development Goals, which aimed to eradicate extreme poverty, combat malaria and HIV/AIDS, reduce child mortality, and improve maternal health.
Monsoon rains finally eased in Kerala. Authorities said some 22,000 people have been rescued from the southern Indian state, but more than 350 people have died, mostly in landslides. Helicopters were finally able to reach places cut off by weeks of rain.
Italy held a state funeral for 19 of the 43 victims confirmed dead in the Genoa bridge collapse. The families of at least 17 of those who died refused to attend the Saturday service, and criticized the Italian government for failing to act on prior safety concerns that may have prevented the collapse. Meanwhile, rescue workers continue to look for victims in the rubble.
Vladimir Putin and Angela Merkel met in Germany. The Russian president and the German chancellor discussed conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, a project opposed by the US. A spokesman for the Kremlin said that no concrete agreements were reached. Putin also made a brief stop (paywall) at the wedding of Austria’s foreign minister.
Crazy Rich Asians dominated the US box office. The first Hollywood film with an all-Asian cast in 25 years raked in $34 million over its first five days—the best opening for any romantic comedy in several years and a huge victory for representation in Hollywood. Kevin Spacey’s latest movie, Billionaire Boys Club, was not so lucky—the film grossed $126 across 10 theaters on Friday.
Quartz Obsession interlude
Thu-Huong Ha on how to read freely during the summer holidays. “Productivity-focused approaches to reading—gunning for 52 books in a year, or listening to audiobooks on triple speed—rely upon shame and panic as a prompt to pick up a book. This is a form of motivation that can certainly work, but it rewards speed, brevity, and completion, rather than curiosity, diversity of ideas, and depth of engagement.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
We aren’t living in a grim new post-truth world. Rather, it’s the same multi-truth one we’ve always been in.
Too many cities are becoming victims of their own tourism success. People need to think harder about how and why they travel.
The fashion industry should stop using adolescent models. Pressure to maintain unhealthy weights and widespread sexism in fashion mean the least we can do is keep children out of it.
Surprising discoveries
Many people in the Middle Ages believed lambs grew on trees. The mythical “lamb-tree” puzzled scientists and philosophers alike for centuries.
Ultra-long-distance flights don’t have to leave you feeling awful. Airlines are enlisting the help of scientists and spa chefs to turn 20-hour trips into mini vacations (paywall).
Investors love Skechers. Uncool as the brand is, its stock returned over 800% (paywall) over a five-year period—much better than cooler competitors like Nike and Under Armour.
Americans flush as much as 10 metric tons of contact lenses down the drain each year. But they can wind up hurting fish and other ocean life.
Stacking concrete blocks is an efficient way of storing energy. A Swiss startup believes it has a cheap alternative to batteries.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, delicious airplane meals, and uncool sneakers 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.