Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Greece begins clearing out the Idomeni refugee camp… Police began moving the approximately 8,000 refugees who’ve been stranded at the huge Greek-Macedonian border camp for months. No violence was reported, although refugees were reluctant to leave as they still hope the border will reopen and want to avoid being put in government-run centers.
…and is caught between Europe and the IMF. The euro zone’s finance ministers are expected to approve €10 billion ($11.2 billion) in new loans to stave off a potential Greek default in July. But they are at odds with the International Monetary Fund, which wants to give Athens “upfront and unconditional” debt relief (paywall).
A fresh batch of earnings. Best Buy, DSW, Kirkland’s, AutoZone, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise all report quarterly results.
While you were sleeping
Sony’s forecast suffered earthquake damage. The Japanese conglomerate had delayed announcing its forecast for the current financial year to give it time to analyze the impact of the earthquake in April that forced it to temporarily close its Kumamoto plant. It expects a 46% drop in net income, to $730 million, and sales to fall by more than 20%.
Brazil’s interim government is already scandal-tainted. Planning minister Romero Juca resigned after just 10 days on the job, after the release of secretly taped phone call in which he appears to talk about stopping the corruption investigation into oil company Petrobas by having president Dilma Rousseff impeached and changing the government.
Strikes over labor law hit France’s oil refineries. Around 20% of the country’s gas stations have run dry or are perilously low on gas as unions demand a reversal of the government’s new labor laws, which were forced through parliament without a vote this month.
Sudan signed a deal for its first nuclear reactor. Its electricity ministry agreed to a framework for a project with China National Nuclear Corp. Construction is slated to begin in 2021, followed by commercial operations in 2027.
Facebook said it will tweak its Trending Topics feature. After allegations, which it still denies, that the service deliberately suppressed conservative views, the company will no longer rely on a top 10 list of websites to determine whether a subject is newsworthy, among other changes.
Quartz obsession interlude
Matt Phillips on why Vietnam is globalization’s last big fan. “A 2014 survey by Pew Research noted that ‘the Vietnamese are the most enthusiastic backers of both trade and investment’ among the nations included in the Trans Pacific Partnership… Some 95% of Vietnamese respondents said that ‘trade is good,’ with high percentages concurring that trade both creates jobs and raises wages.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Your brain is not a computer. The ubiquitous metaphor is based on faulty logic.
Your Facebook feed is keeping you from making the world better. Social media stymies our ability to understand others, the US ambassador to the UN says.
Breakfast is not that crucial. The cereal industry is responsible for most of the studies that claim otherwise (paywall).
Surprising discoveries
Barack Obama and chef Anthony Bourdain met for street food in Hanoi… The other diners seemed to studiously ignore them.
…and David Cameron is buying used cars from his local dealer. For his wife, apparently.
Climate change is forcing interspecies romance among bears. “Grolar” bears are popping up where grizzly and polar bears share the same turf.
An ancient Indian remedy is the hot new hipster drink. Turmeric lattes are being hailed for their purported health effects.
Allergies might actually be a good thing. An emerging theory suggests they protect against harmful environmental toxins.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, hybrid bears, and trendy lattes to hi@qz.com. You can download our iPhone app or follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day.