Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Line kicks off its dual IPO. The Japanese messaging app will begin trading, offering 22 million shares at $31 each on the New York Stock Exchange. The Tokyo-based company will sell another 13 million shares in its hometown on Friday.
The Bank of England’s first post-Brexit interest rate decision. The central bank may slash its benchmark rate from 0.5%, a record low that has stood unchanged since 2009, to 0.25%. Governor Mark Carney has hinted that the move is necessary because the country’s economic outlook has recently “deteriorated.”
JP Morgan Chase kicks off bank earnings season. America’s largest bank by assets is expected to post lower revenues and profits, as Wall Street struggles in the wake of the UK’s Brexit vote. CEO Jamie Dimon announced on Tuesday that he’s raising the minimum wage for his 18,000 employees to at least $12 an hour.
While you were sleeping
Theresa May took over, and brought Boris Johnson back in from the cold. The new prime minister’s cabinet includes Johnson as foreign minister; Philip Hammond as chancellor of the exchequer; and David Davis in the newly created position of “secretary of state for leaving the European Union.” May vowed to honor the Brexit referendum and create an economy that “works for everyone.”
The US urged calm in the South China Sea. The US sent private diplomatic messages to Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, and other countries warning them not to send ships into disputed territories. Tensions are high after an international court ruling declared China’s claims over the sea to be baseless.
Japan’s emperor said he has no plans to resign. After reports circulated that 82-year-old Emperor Akihito would step down, the imperial palace said the monarch had no such plans. An abdication would be first in Japan in over 200 years, and shock a country that values stability.
Tesla cut prices and ended its buyback guarantees. The company is discontinuing its resale value guarantee program, which promised buyers that their cars would retain value. It also lowered the starting price of the Model X SUV—its second major cut this year.
Yum Brands celebrated a solid quarter. The company behind KFC and Pizza Hut said it expects core operating profit for the year to increase by 14%. Sales in China have rebounded just before it prepares to spin off its operations there.
Quartz markets haiku
Markets still quite weird.
Germany sold bonds with yields
at less than zero
Quartz obsession interlude
Ester Bloom on Square guilting customers into tipping. “Customers who choose to patronize artisanal doughnut shops may be more likely to have an extra buck or two to spare for humanitarian reasons, having already decided that they can part with $4 for a raspberry-mascarpone-swirl.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Protectionism could be good for the United States. The priority is to protect those left behind while staying open to globalization and technology.
ISIL is preparing for the loss of its caliphate. Terror attacks are likely to intensify.
Pokémon Go may be annoying, but it’s the future. Augmented reality will soon take over our lives, so ignore Pikachu hunters at your own peril.
Surprising discoveries
The French president’s hairdresser gets paid $11,000 a month. That’s more than a member of the European Parliament, and is almost half the salary of Francois Hollande himself.
Chinese students learn they own the South China Sea from a young age. They’re taught nothing about how the sea is disputed in geography class.
Drones will fire vaccine-laced candy to save endangered ferrets. The “glorified gumball machine” will actually target prairie dogs, which the ferrets eat.
The original ghostbuster was a woman. Rose Mackenberg worked with Harry Houdini to debunk phony psychics.
The world’s largest Viking ship needs $400,000. It can’t sail the Great Lakes unless it obeys costly US regulations.
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