🌍 Fed considers half-point rate increase

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Here’s what you need to know

The US Federal Reserve is considering a half-point rate increase. Fed chair Jerome Powell said the aggressive monetary tactic is a possible weapon in the fight against inflation.

Biden said Putin’s “back is against the wall.” As Russia uses increasingly deadly military force in Ukraine, the US president warned of the possible deployment of chemical weapons.

Russia banned Facebook and Instagram for “extremist activities.” The Russian state communications agency alleged the tech giant discriminated against state media, though WhatsApp will not be affected.

Investigators are trying to determine why a China Eastern plane nosedived. Boeing, whose stock fell on news of the disaster in Guangxi province, says it is assisting. No survivors have been found.

Disney’s CEO is trying to placate disgruntled employees. Bob Chapek promised “lasting change” after some members of staff complained about the lack of corporate pushback against Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill.

Alibaba’s share buyback program is now worth $25 billion. The Chinese giant is taking further steps to prop up its falling stock price.

What to watch for

Tesla CEO Elon Musk traveled to Berlin on Monday (March 21) ahead of today’s grand opening of his new “gigafactory,” the automaker’s first manufacturing plant in Europe. The long-delayed facility is the fifth plant in Tesla’s arsenal—it already has three in the US and one in China.

Back home, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) faces a deadline concerning Musk. After he was sued over securities fraud charges in 2018, Musk signed a consent decree saying that lawyers would review some of his tweets ahead of time. He now claims that he was coerced into signing that decree and wants the rule thrown out. The SEC has until today to respond to Musk’s efforts to scrap the consent decree.

Steel as a casualty of war

Production at one of Europe’s largest steel plants—the Azovstal plant in Mariupol, Ukraine—has been suspended since Russia invaded the country on Feb. 24. Now, things are looking even worse for the world’s 12th largest steel producer.

On March 20, Russian shelling badly damaged Azovstal. The plant, owned by Ukrainian steel and mining company Metinvest, alone accounted for nearly half of the country’s steel output last year. Given Ukraine lost 0.7% of its annual steel production in just the first five days of the war, any long-term damage to the plant will bring about much larger economic consequences for the country and its biggest steel customers.

Beyond profit

Ever wonder what capitalism would be like if all companies met rigorous standards for transparency and accountability?

Answering that question is part of the mission of B Corp organizations. Join Quartz CEO Zach Seward and Jorge Fontanez, CEO of B Lab, for the US and Canada, as they talk with the leaders of Seventh Generation and Revolution Foods.

Register today. The hour-long event is on March 23, at 1pm US eastern time.

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🌍 Amazon’s Africa headquarters may be put on hold over indigenous people’s concerns

🐷 We desperately need to disrupt our approach to retirement saving

💍 Marriages in China have hit a 36-year low

💰Indian tax officials say crypto profits are like lottery wins

Surprising discoveries

An Ecuadorian toad sings like a bird. The amphibian was thought to be mute until one sharp-eared biologist discovered otherwise.

McDonald’s is bringing back a rare condiment. “Szechuan Sauce” has made multiple brief appearances, which have not been without controversy.

“Skip Intro” was a leap of faith. In five years, Netflix has saved its users 195 years of cumulative time with a single button that bypasses a thing you only need to see once.

Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un lookalikes helped a Volodymyr Zelenskyy lookalike get out of Ukraine. The impersonator industry seems a lot nicer than the world leader industry.

Did we do Google Glass dirty? The high-tech specs didn’t take off, but they’re not far off from the place modern prosthetics companies are trying to go. Learn more in the latest episode of the Quartz Obsession podcast.

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Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, birds that croak like toads, and favorite fast food sauces 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 Ananya Bhattacharya, Courtney Vinopal, Hasit Shah, Scott Nover, Susan Howson, Michelle Cheng, and Morgan Haefner.