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Here’s what you need to know
It’s official: Joe Biden won. The US electoral college formally affirmed the president-elect’s victory. Meanwhile, attorney general William Barr resigned.
China’s economic recovery continues. Industrial output, investment, and consumer spending are all surging. Meanwhile, BBC News reports that thousands of Uyghurs are being forced to work in cotton fields in Xinjiang.
California subpoenaed Amazon over worker safety. The state is ordering the retail giant to provide more information on how it protects its employees from Covid-19.
Adidas could sell Reebok. The German sportswear giant said it hasn’t yet decided what to do with its US-focused subsidiary, whose popularity has declined in recent years.
Burger King’s India IPO was royally good. Shares more than doubled on the first day of trading.
PornHub took down all unverified videos. After Visa and Mastercard blocked payments on the site last week, following reports of child pornography, Pornhub removed most of its content.
France is investigating Carlos Ghosn for possible tax evasion. Authorities have reportedly seized $16 million in assets from the fugitive former Nissan and Renault chair and his wife.
What to watch for
The European Union is gearing up for a new wave of antitrust lawsuits. Today, the bloc will formally propose the Digital Markets Act, Nicolás Rivero reports, which will give regulators new firepower to go after Big Tech companies for anticompetitive practices. Companies that break these rules would face escalating fines and the threat that regulators will break up their businesses.
Meanwhile, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok also face huge fines in the UK. New rules proposed there today would fine the three social media companies up to 10% of global revenue if they fail to remove and limit the spread of illegal content.
So far, however, fines have failed to meaningfully change the way the world’s biggest digital platforms operate—and Europe’s anti-monopoly czar Margrethe Vestager has said that breakups are a “nuclear option” of last resort. Real, structural changes will probably come out of US courts, which will soon hear new cases against Facebook and Google.
Charting Walmart’s international reshuffle
Walmart may be the world’s largest retailer, but its international growth is stalled. Between 2015 and 2020, while US sales rose steadily, Walmart’s international sales actually shrank. To fix that, the retailer has its eyes on four markets in particular: Mexico, India, China, and Canada.
Other countries are getting cut, Marc Bain reports. Since October, Walmart has offloaded assets in the UK and Japan, while completely giving up on Argentina.
“The opportunity that we have in India is enormous,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon explained. “Contrast that with the opportunity in Argentina. It makes sense that we would spread our energy over a place that’s got tremendous upside.”
The Estonia of Africa?
To remain competitive in an increasingly integrated Europe, Estonia is focused on developing technology-driven government services, like e-Residency, which allows entrepreneurs to form a EU company no matter where they live. With Africa’s economy set to become far more connected under the African Continental Free Trade Area, we look at which countries on the continent are best positioned to follow Estonia’s lead:
🇷🇼 Rwanda has already developed a world-class online business registration system, which could be adapted to administer an e-Resident program.
🇲🇺 Mauritius ranks among the best countries in the world when it comes to ease of starting a business and is a leading international financial hub for Africa.
🇬🇭 Ghana is one of Africa’s economic growth hotspots, and is generally considered well-governed and politically free.
✦ Consider an e-Residency, er, membership at Quartz. Try it free for seven days.
Surprising discoveries
Kevin from The Office (US) is Cameo’s top 2020 earner. Actor Brian Baumgartner raked in more than $1 million on the platform.
Faster and fluffier than Usain Bolt. America’s fastest dog is a four-year-old rescue from Maryland.
England has discovered 47,000 new artifacts this year. Whoever buried this small trove of 16th-century gold coins probably doesn’t need them now
Scientists found 20 new species in the Andes. Say hello to the Lilliputian frog, Bolivian flag snake, and mountain fer-de-lance viper.
New species are more likely to crop up in less biodiverse areas. These evolutionary hotspots tend to be inhospitable, so new species also die out faster.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, backyard archaeological finds, and new patriotic species to hi@qz.com. Get the most out of Quartz by downloading our iOS app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Hasit Shah, Jordan Lebeau, Liz Webber, and Susan Howson.