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What to watch for today
South Korea is officially not one of Japan’s favored trading partners. Japan’s decision to remove its neighbor from its preferred trade list goes into effect today, potentially delaying shipment of more than 800 “strategic materials” to South Korea, whose high-tech economy relies on many of these exports.
Duterte takes a tougher stance. The Philippine president will make his fifth visit to Beijing today, and though previous meetings with Xi Jinping have been smooth sailing, this time Duterte is likely to bring up an international tribunal’s ruling that refutes China’s claim on the South China Sea—a ruling Xi has ignored.
A new 1MDB trial begins. Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak’s first corruption trial, which ended Tuesday, only addressed 42 million ringgit ($10 million). This second case will examine four counts of power abuse, which led to Najib becoming the recipient of 2.3 billion ringgit ($547 million).
While you were sleeping
Funding for the Amazon fires got personal. Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro said he would accept G7 nations’ offer of $22 million in aid only if he got a personal apology from French president Emmanuel Macron. The leaders have exchanged barbs in tweets and press conferences, and Bolsonaro has said that the aid offer disrespected Brazil’s sovereignty.
Purdue Pharma offered $10-12 billion to settle its opioid lawsuits. The OxyContin manufacturer and its owners, the Sackler family, face more than 2,000 cases alleging that they fueled an addiction epidemic that killed hundreds of thousands of people. Under the terms of the settlement, Purdue would go into bankruptcy and the family would give up ownership of the company.
A Google-turned-Uber engineer was indicted for stealing trade secrets. Anthony Levandowski, who worked in Google’s self-driving car division Waymo, faces 33 counts of theft and attempted theft. He allegedly downloaded 14,000 confidential documents and left Waymo to start his own company, which Uber promptly bought for $680 million.
British MPs came up with a backup plan. A cross-party meeting found common ground in an agreement to create an alternative parliament if and when UK prime minister Boris Johnson shuts down the existing one in order to force a no-deal Brexit.
Peloton publicly filed for its IPO. The at-home fitness company previously said it had filed its paperwork confidentially, but just released the documents for all to see. Its filing shows that sales are growing quickly—but so are its losses.
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Evidence of China’s rising power in Africa runs the length of Kenya’s new Standard Gauge Railway, which Beijing financed more than 100 years after the construction of the “Lunatic Express,” its earlier colonial train system. But Kenya is struggling to make its flagship runway a commercial success.
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Quartz Obsession
The road to autonomous vehicles is longer than we thought. Just a few years ago they were supposed to combat congestion and prevent pollution; now experts warn they could put even more cars on the road, especially in the busiest parts of the biggest cities. And making them safe is proving harder than expected. Hop in to the Quartz Obsession.
Matters of debate
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Job listings should include salary ranges. Transparency makes hiring more fair and efficient.
The city-state is back. After 150 years on top, the nation-state is under siege from globalization and digital technology.
A little piracy is good for everyone. Manufacturers, retailers, and consumers all benefit from a moderate number of illegal downloads.
Surprising discoveries
Graphene turns clothes into mosquito armor. Fabric reinforced with the ultra-strong material keeps bugs at bay—but only when it’s perfectly dry.
Vikings invaded Aarhus’s crosswalks. Traffic lights in the Danish city now show a walking viking when it’s time for pedestrians to go.
Chinese spies are recruiting American assets on LinkedIn. Former intelligence officers are making it easy by listing their agencies and government clearances online.
The BBC is launching a geographically sensitive voice assistant. The device, known as Beeb, will be able to understand regional British accents.
There could be millions of different blood types. Scientists have, so far, only grouped them into the most common categories—A, B, AB, and O.
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