Good morning, Quartz readers!
You may notice a few new things in the Daily Brief, as part of Quartz’s biggest expansion since we launched six years ago. We’re introducing a new app for the Quartz community, built around commenting and conversation, and a new membership program that offers a field guide to the players and phenomena that are upending the global economy.
The Brief’s new “Conversation Starters” section takes the place of “Matters of Debate,” and gives you the highlights of the day’s comments in the new Quartz app (iOS only for now, Android very soon). We hope you’ll join the conversation!
What to watch for today
A moment of reckoning for Brexit. UK and EU negotiators reached a draft agreement yesterday, subject to approval from British prime minister Theresa May’s deeply divided cabinet, which will weigh the deal today. EU ambassadors will also consider the document, which is several hundred pages long.
A high-flying cannabis company reports earnings. Canopy Growth will report financial results for the third quarter—before Canada legalized recreational marijuana, but well after stores began to stockpile supplies ahead of the change. Analysts expect Canopy’s losses to widen before it turns profitable next year.
Investors hope for regulatory relief for Tencent. The Hong Kong-listed Chinese social-media giant, which makes nearly 40% of its revenue from online games, has been battered by China’s freeze on new titles. Investors will be looking for information on the regulatory outlook when it posts its July-September results. The company’s lost over $200 billion (paywall) in market value this year.
Greek civil servants strike. Greece’s biggest public-sector union, which has half a million members, is holding a 24-hour walkout to demand increases in wages, pensions, and hiring. Greece’s international bailout from a debt crisis in 2009 has involved years of austerity.
Clues on future rate increases from the Fed. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell will be speaking about the US and global economy before an audience at an event hosted by the Dallas Fed. Nuanced signs that the central bank isn’t overly committed (paywall) to a cycle of tightening could cheer markets.
While you were sleeping
Snap said it got subpoenas over its 2017 IPO. The social-media company said the inquiries from the US Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department appear to be related to a shareholder lawsuit over the information it shared ahead of its IPO about how Facebook’s Instagram was affecting its business.
China reported better-than-expected industrial activity, but slower retail sales. China’s economy is being watched closely for signs of how it’s weathering the trade war, with consumer sentiment a particular concern as the country tries to rely more on domestic demand for growth. Retail sales grew 8.6% in October from a year earlier, but analysts had hoped for a 9.1% rise.
ASEAN and China talked South China Sea. Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte, not known for being tough on China over its militarization of the disputed waters, said he would press China for a “code of conduct.” Southeast Asia’s leaders are also huddling with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, and Japan’s Shinzo Abe in Singapore today.
Juul tried to stay a step ahead of regulators. The popular US vaping startup said it would remove most of its flavored pods (paywall) from shelves and stop marketing its product on social media, ahead of an expected FDA crackdown later this week. CEO Kevin Burns said the move is an attempt to discourage young users, but critics say the damage has already been done.
Obsession interlude
The magnetic stripe has quietly powered our card-centric lives for decades. It owes its dominance to three parties: the CIA, an IBM engineer, and his wife. Take a swipe at this overlooked, endangered technology at the Quartz Obsession.
Conversation starters
“Employees have to stand up for their values and what is right. Ruth sent a important message by doing this—as a colleague, as a human, not as ‘management.’”
—Beth Comstock, former vice chair of General Electric, commenting on: This is why Google CFO Ruth Porat walked out to protest sexual harassment
“14 million Yemenis could be at risk of starvation and damage to Hodeidah port, which is the key entry point for food needed to avert these preventable deaths, would be disastrous. An immediate, UN Security Council-mandated ceasefire is absolutely vital, as is the end of US and UK diplomatic and military support for the Coalition’s war strategy.”
—David Miliband, president and CEO at International Rescue Committee, commenting on: 149 killed in 24 hours in Yemen’s Hodeida
“Google, Facebook, and Amazon are blocking huge swaths of opportunity that would normally attract startups, forcing venture dollars into sectors that are more capital intensive than traditional tech.”
—Roger McNamee, co-founder and managing director of Elevation Partners, commenting on: More Venture-Capital Money Is Going Into Fewer Startup Deals
Surprising discoveries
Men were tricked into wearing stretchy jeans. Denim makers snuck secret comfort into their products so guys wouldn’t scoff.
There’s no such thing as flushable wet wipes. No wipes billing themselves as “flushable” have passed disintegration tests in the UK.
New Yorkers are buying Jeff Bezos a helipad. Taxpayer money will fund the Amazon CEO’s landing site in Queens.
Justin Trudeau apparently has a hidden buzzer to escape meetings. It reportedly signals staff to discreetly extract the Canadian prime minister from a pow-wow.
The Czech prime minister insists he didn’t order his son’s kidnapping. His opponents say he was attempting to derail a fraud investigation.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, stretchy jeans, and personal helipads to hi@qz.com. Today’s Daily Brief was written and edited by Tripti Lahiri and Alice Truong.