Good morning, Quartz readers!
Hereās what you need to know
The US student loan forgiveness website is now live. President Joe Biden said 8 million people already filed applications via StudentAid.gov without encountering glitches.
Americaās first and only digital ad tax was declared unconstitutional. A Maryland court ruled in favor of Verizon and Comcast, which filed a challenge in April 2021.
Texas launched a probe into Sam Bankman-Fried and his company FTX Trading. Securities regulators said the planned acquisition of Voyager shouldnāt go ahead until they investigate whether FTXās yield-bearing crypto accounts break the law.
Microsoft became the latest tech firm to lay off workers. The company did not provide a number for the job cuts, but Axios reported they were kept under 1,000, across teams and countries.
Ye agreed to buy conservative social media app Parler. The controversial rapper formerly known as Kanye West wonāt be able to avoid content moderation, even as a platform owner.
Canada targeted Russian misinformation in a new sanctions round. Ottawa imposed sanctions on 34 people and one television network run by Russiaās Ministry of Defense.
What to watch for
The planned release of Chinaās third-quarter GDP data, scheduled for today, has been postponedāno new date or reason for the unusual delay has been given.Ā
Economists have predicted economic growth of 3.4% in the July to September period from a year earlier, up from the 0.4% growth slump in the second quarter that was marked by widespread pandemic lockdowns and a worsening real estate crisis.
The indefinite postponement could suggest that the numbers are not looking too rosy and would likely clash with the rousing and confident speech Chinese leader Xi Jinping just gave at the opening of the week-long 20th Communist Party Congress two days ago.
The official target for GDP growth this year, set in March, is āaround 5.5%.ā By July, officials had reportedly begun softening that goal. Regardless of when Chinaās GDP figures are eventually released, itās unlikely that theyāll be anywhere close to that target.
Pop quiz: What food product has had the highest price jump in the US?
Hint: You wonāt believe itās not butter! Margarine is made from vegetable oils, including sunflower oil. A second pop quiz: Which two countries make up nearly three-quarters of the worldās supply of sunflower oil? Hint: One was invaded by the other in February.
Initial worry about vegetable oil scarcity caused consumers to stock up, which, of course, created true scarcity. It doesnāt help that butterās price has also gone up, which could push homes to channel the 1980s and switch to butterās hydrogenated oil replicant.
Margarine is just one product that can illustrate how global challenges are elevating food prices. Since Jan. 2020, the consumer price index for food has gone up 20%, outpacing overall core prices by around 15%, US Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows. Need some grocery relief? Try tomatoes.

How to keep your frontline workers from quitting
A years-long global event that needed them, labor shortages, soaring costs of livingāfrontline employees who must physically show up to do their job, are seriously burned out. Kylie Uvodich, general manager at SafetyCulture, describes five actions employers can take to improve the work (and lives) of frontline workers.
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Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, beam speeding tickets, and surplus private jets to hi@qz.com. Reader support makes Quartz available to allābecome a member. Todayās Daily Brief was brought to you by Sofia Lotto Persio, Mary Hui, Julia Malleck, and Susan Howson.