Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
The UK releases GDP figures. With Brexit still hanging over the country and a general election next month, the UK is trying to keep the economy ticking along. Growth is likely to be minimal, given other recent indicators.
Turkey repatriates ISIS fighters. Ankara said it would send back militants captured following its recent incursion into northwestern Syria, regardless of whether their European home nations welcome them or not.
Mercury crosses the Sun. The fast-moving planet will appear as a tiny black dot at 12.35pm GMT as it transits the Sun for five-and-a-half hours. Mercury will cross closer to the center of the Sun’s disk this time than any other transit this century.
Over the weekend
The far-right made gains in Spain’s elections. The ruling Socialist party won the most votes but fell short of a majority. Profiting from Catalan unrest, the nationalist Vox more than doubled its vote share to become the third-largest party, pointing to an increasingly fractious situation ahead.
Hong Kong police opened fire. A live-streamed video showed two unarmed men shot during protest operations aimed at disrupting traffic this morning, following a 24th weekend of unrest. Police also fired multiple rounds of tear gas in the Central financial district at lunch time as protesters gathered to denounce police brutality.
Evo Morales resigned. Following weeks of protests and pressure from the military, the Bolivian president said he agreed with the findings of international monitors who said last month’s elections should be annulled. Mexico has offered Morales asylum.
India resolved a festering land dispute. The Supreme Court gave Hindu groups possession of a site in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, where the Babri mosque stood before being demolished by a Hindu nationalist mob in 1992. The pledge to build a temple at the site fueled the rise of prime minister Narendra Modi.
Saudi Aramco released its IPO prospectus. The world’s largest oil company announced that its IPO will kick off on Nov. 17 and that it will offer less than 1% of its shares to individual investors. Separately, Iran announced it found a new tranche of oil reserves.
Quartz Obsession
The world is full speed ahead on 5G. The still-nascent standard promises wireless connection speeds dozens, potentially a hundred, times faster than 4G. But it’s not going to be a smooth upgrade: Global security concerns about China’s massive 5G vendor Huawei are further complicating an already expensive and intensive buildout. Test your connection with the Quartz Obsession.
Matters of Debate
Meditation apps miss the point. Mindfulness, when stripped of all its religious elements, may distort understandings of Buddhism.
Europe is again divided between East and West. A new clash of values (paywall) is re-emerging three decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Today’s sexist weapon is tomorrow’s political tool. Women are often the first target for tactics that go on to warp the broader system.
Surprising discoveries
A popular Egyptian dating app has an online chaperone. Harmonica’s “guardian” feature allows online flirting transcripts to be sent to a friend or relative.
A snow crab fetched a record $46,000 in Japan. An upscale eatery in Tokyo’s Ginza neighborhood will serve it up.
The Apple Card may be sexist. It’s being investigated by regulators after a viral tweet claimed a husband and wife were offered wildly different credit limits by Goldman Sachs.
Lesotho is a cannabis hotspot. The tiny, landlocked African kingdom is loved by growers for its high altitudes and abundant water supply.
A house drifted down the River Thames. The floating home was part of a protest organized by the climate-change group Extinction Rebellion.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, online chaperones, and Lesotho souvenirs to hi@qz.com. Get the most out of Quartz by downloading our app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Isabella Steger and edited by Tripti Lahiri.