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What to watch for today
Xi Jinping begins a controversial European tour. The Chinese president is expected to sign up Italy for China’s trillion-dollar Belt and Road infrastructure project, despite warnings from the US and NATO allies that it will strengthen Beijing’s hand.
The Bank of England sits on its hands. The UK central bank is expected to keep interest rates where they are, amid continued uncertainty about Brexit.
A blue-chip, blue-jeans IPO. Denim icon Levi’s is expected to achieve a valuation of $5.8 billion while raising $550 million (paywall), the bulk of which will go to the descendants of founder Levi Strauss.
While you were sleeping
Donald Trump nixed ending US tariffs on China. The US president said he would not remove penalties on Chinese goods “for a substantial period of time” (paywall) to confirm that Beijing complies with any agreement: “We have to make sure that if we do the deal with China that China lives by the deal.”
Theresa May asked the EU to delay Brexit until June 30. With just over a week to go before a March 29 deadline, May would have to obtain the unanimous consent of all 27 EU member states, while also corralling fractious members of Parliament at home. European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said May must secure “approval of the negotiated deal and she must bring clear ideas on timing.”
The Federal Reserve softened its stance on rate hikes. The US central bank, citing a slowing US economy, said it does not intend to raise benchmark interest rates in 2019, and plans to end its balance sheet reductions by September.
The EU fined Google $1.7 billion in its latest crackdown. Competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager said Google and its parent Alphabet illegally restricted third-party websites that wanted to use its Adsense advertising platform. The fine is the third massive fine levied against Google by the EU, for a total of about $10 billion—or about 3.7% of its 2018 revenue.
An alleged billionaire Indian fraudster was arrested in London. Diamond trader Nirav Modi was detained on behalf of Indian authorities, who say he helped orchestrate a $2 billion scam against Punjab National Bank.
The Pentagon is investigating the US acting defense secretary over his ties to Boeing. The inspector general’s office is probing a watchdog group’s complaint against Patrick Shanahan for promoting the aerospace giant, where he worked for 30 years, to the detriment of its rival Lockheed Martin. Before joining the Pentagon, Shanahan signed an ethics agreement to recuse himself from any decisions involving Boeing.
Quartz Obsession
Hedge funds: Capping off a decade of lackluster performance, the industry lost $88 billion in 2018. So why do the ultra-rich and endowed institutions keep investing in them? Hedge your bets with today’s Quartz Obsession, and beware our 2 and 20 fees.
Membership
Corporate boards: It’s not easy being in charge. From activist investors to the government, here are all the ways that directors are under pressure. We also have a helpful primer on the Paul Jarvis book Company of One, which breaks down the merits of staying small, and a riveting installment of Private Key, looking at the New Zealand shooter’s claims to have profited from an infamous crypto pyramid scheme.
Matters of debate
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The best social network is the … email newsletter. It provides an outlet for expression and a mode of connection without bots or trolls.
Finland is the world’s happiest country. Factors include economic measures like gross domestic product as well as indicators like life expectancy and social support.
The world needs genderless voice assistants. Unlike Alexa or Siri, the voice of the new Q is intentionally neither female nor male.
Surprising discoveries
Smoking potent weed is linked to psychosis. A new UK study also warns that daily use makes mental illness more likely.
People trust AI to make better decisions than politicians. But they also expect the government to regulate the impact of tech on their lives.
A ride-along pilot saved a 737 Max 8 a day before it crashed. The off-duty captain, sitting in the cockpit, helped the crew diagnose and solve the problem (paywall) that doomed the Lion Air plane the next day.
The CEO of AT&T was interrupted onstage by a robocall. During an interview, Randall Stephenson declined a spam call.
A new postpartum depression treatment costs $34,000. It also requires (paywall) staying in a medical center to undergo a 60-hour IV infusion.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, CEO robocall avoidance, and genderless AI assistants to hi@qz.com. Join the next chapter of Quartz by downloading our app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was written and edited by Adam Pasick and Holly Ojalvo.