Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today and over the weekend
European and Asian leaders meet in Ulaanbaatar. German chancellor Angela Merkel and Chinese premier Li Keqiang are among those gathered in the Mongolian capital for the two-day Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), a biennial dialog. Beijing wants no discussion about the recent South China Sea ruling that didn’t go its way, but that’s unlikely.
Censored 9/11 documents may be released. Twenty-eight classified pages from a congressional inquiry are expected to be made public. The families of 9/11 victims who are suing Saudi Arabia think the pages may contain evidence linking the kingdom’s government to the attacks.
The US Commerce Department reports on June retail sales. Consumer spending patterns were healthy in May, and economist’s expect last month’s numbers to have edged up 0.1% (pdf), held back by tepid demand for cars.
While you were sleeping
A truck crashed into a large crowd of Bastille Day revelers in Nice, France. In what appeared to be a terrorist attack, more than 70 people were killed, and many more wounded, as the truck rolled a distance of 2 km (1.2 miles) through the crowd. Police shot the driver dead.
Samsung bought 4% of a Chinese electric-car maker. The South Korean giant paid $449 million for a stake in BYD, which could help with its chip business for electric cars. BYD is backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway.
China reported its GDP growth for the second quarter. The figure came in at 6.7%—right on track with the government’s target of no lower than 6.5% for the year. The statistic is widely considered to be flawed, however, and the country is struggling with an economic slowdown amid questions about the health of its financial system.
Bayer upped the ante for Monsanto. The German chemical giant is now offering almost $55 billion for the US pesticide and seed company, after upping its bid from $122 to $125 per share. Monsanto may also receive an offer from Bayer’s archrival BASF.
Quartz markets haiku
Three-point-four percent
That’s the mortgage rate right now
Got the down payment?
Quartz obsession interlude
Nikhil Sonnad and Alice Truong with the ultimate guide to Pokémon Go. “At first, it seems like all you do is wander around, catching random fake animals… Much like in life itself, you are dropped into a world that you must master at the same time as you figure out how it works.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Facebook and Twitter are building a culture of snitching. Their businesses rely on users monitoring each other—mostly without realizing it.
Tesla should pump the brakes on its autopilot feature. A leading consumer group thinks it is too much autonomy, too soon.
The nuclear arms race is about to get mixed up in the space race. Russia’s reported development of a nuclear-armed spaceship would destabilize world order.
Surprising discoveries
The Tour de France leader had to run to the finish line. Chris Froome used his own two legs to finish a stage after a bike-wrecking crash.
Why did turtles evolve to have shells? Not for protection, but for digging.
The US government is paying for Zika-infected seminal fluid. Forty donors have received $50 “multi-use gift cards.”
A mysterious giver is littering an Oregon town with $100 bills. Residents have been finding signed “Bennys” for the past three years.
A New York convent won’t accept a debt-ridden woman as a nun. A lifetime of religious service requires paying off student loans first.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, cash litter, and nun debt to hi@qz.com You can download our iPhone app or follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day.