Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
The Koreas hold their third summit this year. South Korean president Moon Jae-in is in Pyongyang for three days to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The first session of the summit is scheduled to take place after lunch. A major goal will be to create a framework for the North’s denuclearization and to officially declare an end to the Korean War.
The UN General Assembly kicks off. The 73rd session opens today and will run to Oct. 5, but Donald Trump, who is chairing the UN Security Council this month, isn’t expected to show up at UN headquarters until next week. More than 140 leaders will attend, but notably absent will be Chinese president Xi Jinping, Russian president Vladimir Putin, and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi.
Sotheby’s auctions off a Queen Elizabeth portrait and Banksy screenprints. The “Made in Britain” auction will feature 215 works and is expected to fetch between £1.5 million ($2 million) and £2.5 million ($3.3 million).
A checkup on the health of the US housing market. A sentiment survey from the National Association of Home Builders is expected to show a decline of confidence (paywall) from homebuilders, but new numbers from the Commerce Department will likely point to a 5.7% jump in housing starts in August after a muted July.
While you were sleeping
A Japanese billionaire will be SpaceX’s first lunar passenger. Elon Musk’s space company said Yusaku Maezawa, founder and CEO of online fashion retailer Zozo, will take a trip around the moon planned for 2023 on its Big Falcon Rocket, which is still in development. The last time a person traveled to the moon was on a US Apollo mission in 1972.
Brett Kavanaugh will testify on his sexual-assault allegations. The US Senate has set a public hearing on Sept. 24 for the Supreme Court nominee and his accuser Christine Blasey Ford to answer questions about an alleged sexual assault in the 1980s. Kavanaugh’s confirmation vote was initially scheduled for Thursday.
Trump announced fresh tariffs on another $200 billion of Chinese goods. A 10% duty will go into effect on Sept. 24 and jump to 25% by the end of the year. Thousands of Chinese imports will be affected, but some Apple products will be spared. If China retaliates, the president said he was prepared to tax another $267 billion of goods.
HBO and Netflix tied for most Emmy Awards with 23 each. HBO’s Game of Thrones won outstanding drama series, beating out Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, while Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel won outstanding comedy series. Netflix’s The Crown took home five awards, including best actress in a drama.
The US set a cap of accepting 30,000 refugees next year. The new number, down from the current ceiling of 45,000, is a historic low since the US Refugee Act was introduced nearly 40 years ago.
Quartz Obsession interlude
Cassie Werber on how gender equality could save men’s lives. “On average, men die younger than women. Men are also more likely than women to die prematurely, from causes ranging from alcoholism to heart disease to suicide. But a new report from the World Health Organization finds that, in Europe, those problems are particularly acute in countries with the lowest levels of gender equality.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
We should listen to Woody Allen’s wife. Soon-Yi Previn has every right to tell her story like her siblings do.
The world’s priority should be reducing poverty in Africa. Bill Gates says economic models show 90% of people in extreme poverty could be in one continent.
Close your browser tabs. There’s no way you’ll get to all of them, and you’ll drive yourself crazy trying.
Surprising discoveries
Gold miners found the mummy of an ice-age wolf puppy. The eight-week-old’s fur was perfectly preserved over 50,000 years.
Coca-Cola is looking into a marijuana soft drink. The beverage company is reportedly interested in developing a CBD-based drink.
The yellow dress was the “it” look of the Emmys red carpet. At least a dozen celebrities were spotted wearing the color, associated with hope and optimism.
A cyclist broke a land-speed world record pedaling at 184 mph (296 km/h). Denise Mueller-Korenek was assisted by a vehicle (paywall) before she released her tether and pedaled the last three miles.
Toronto’s raccoons have outsmarted its bureaucrats. The animals are getting fatter despite the city spending C$31 million ($23.8 million) on raccoon-resistant garbage bins.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, yellow dresses, and cannabis beverages 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 Alice Truong and edited by Isabella Steger.