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Here’s what you need to know
US secretary of state Mike Pompeo is in London to discuss trade and China. He’s in town just as the UK is set to suspend its extradition agreement with Hong Kong, a week after imposing a ban—with encouragement from the US— on Chinese tech giant Huawei.
EU leaders are making a final push for a coronavirus recovery deal. A marathon summit that started on Friday has so far failed to resolve key divisions between member states over the $2.1 trillion fund. The euro hit a four-month high on hopes of a deal.
Klarna said it has tightened up its lending policies. The ubiquitous online credit company has done well in the pandemic, as shoppers pretend they’re spending less by spreading the cost of items they don’t need, and said it has a default rate of only 1%.
A group of mothers in Portland stood between protesters and federal agents. Dozens of women formed a human chain last night and chanted, “Moms are here, feds stay clear.” Antiracism protests have rocked the northwestern city over the last few days.
What to watch for
Monday: Thousands of US workers are expected to take part in “Strike for Black Lives.” Earnings: IBM and Halliburton.
Tuesday: AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Moderna, and Pfizer testify before the US House Committee of Energy and Commerce on their Covid-19 vaccine development efforts. Earnings: United Airlines, TD Ameritrade, Coca-Cola, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, Capital One, Snap, Harley Davidson, and Texas Instruments.
Wednesday: Pompeo visits Denmark, with China’s treatment of Hong Kong high on the agenda. Earnings: Tesla, Spirit Airlines, Las Vegas Sands, Chipotle, Microsoft, Equifax, Travelzoo, and Nasdaq.
Thursday: The Major League Baseball season begins. Earnings: American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, AT&T, Royal Caribbean, Hershey, E*trade, Expedia, Mattel, T-Mobile, MGM Resorts, Intel, Twitter, and Dow Chemical.
Friday: Kanye West might be dropping a new album titled Donda, according to a short-lived Twitter announcement from the rapper. Earnings: Amex, Verizon, and Honeywell.
Black Americans and cities
Over the past couple of decades, American cities replaced their abandoned downtowns with gleaming new residential developments, fancy restaurants, and office buildings with high-paying jobs. On average, the economies of the biggest metro areas in the US doubled in size between 2001 and 2018, according to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
But Black Americans have been largely left out of the urban economic recovery story. From home ownership to income, they consistently lag behind their white counterparts.
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“Instead of investing in keeping people out, let’s invest in keeping people in.”—Joseph Kenner, CEO of the Greyston Foundation.
Greyston Bakery, which supplies the brownies for Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, is a pioneer of “open hiring”—a recruiting approach that does away with questions about an employee’s prior education, experience, or criminal record. “There’s no interview, no questions asked. We don’t do background checks, drug tests—you show up for your first day of orientation, that is your first day on the job,” says Kenner.
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Surprising discoveries
A Swedish island is fighting coronavirus with knights. They will patrol popular spots on horseback to remind vacationers to behave responsibly.
The US military is recruiting on Twitch. It’s using the Amazon-owned livestreaming platform to connect with young gamers.
The river Seine became a huge outdoor cinema. Parisians boarded dozens of electric boats to watch “Le Grand Bain.”
Astrophysicists unveiled the largest-ever 3D map of the universe. It is a joint effort from hundreds of researchers around the world, who analyzed several million galaxies and quasars.
LeBron’s rookie card sold for $1.8 million. That’s nearly double the previous record.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, 3D cosmos maps, or public health knights to hi@qz.com. Get the most out of Quartz by downloading our app on iOS and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Hasit Shah, Marc Bain, Walter Frick, Karen Ho, and Jackie Bischof.