Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today and over the weekend
Global leaders gather in Peru. Barack Obama visits the APEC summit on his last foreign trip as president, but will be a diminished figure with Donald Trump’s shadow looming large. A Chinese plan for a new trade deal could be discussed as members search for an alternative to the seemingly doomed TPP pact.
Obama meets EU leaders in Berlin. After extolling Angela Merkel’s virtues at length in German TV interviews on Thursday night, the US president will sit down with her and the leaders of Italy, France and the UK today, before he leaves for Lima and APEC. They’ll discuss extending Russian sanctions, ISIL, global security—and Trump… mostly Trump.
Angela Merkel has some news. She’ll hold a press conference on Sunday, where she’s expected to confirm long-running speculation that she’ll run for a fourth term as chancellor. Her approval rating has bounced back recently, after slipping earlier in the year over her handling of the influx of refugees.
French presidential primaries. Conservative Alain Juppé and former president Nicolas Sarkozy are the favorites out of seven hopefuls for the Republican party, which holds its first round of primaries on Sunday. Whoever wins the second round will go head-to-head with far-right Front National leader Marine Le Pen and with Emmanuel Macron, the ex-Socialist minister who announced his candidacy this week.
It’s Black Friday. Shop till you drop today. US retailers, and Amazon in particular, are offering a host of bargains ahead of the holiday season.
While you were sleeping
Donald Trump anointed Michael Flynn as his national security advisor. Flynn is a former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and strident critic of the Obama administration. He believes America needs a more aggressive military strategy, is a big fan of Vladimir Putin, and wants closer ties with Russia.
Trump’s team see-sawed on the idea of a Muslim registry. After recent reports that Trump’s policy advisers were discussing a registry to track Muslims in the US, a spokesman said Trump has “never advocated” for such a thing. But he’s on video advocating for exactly that.
Volkswagen said it will slash 30,000 jobs. The job cuts (23,000 in Germany alone) will happen between now and 2021. VW needs to claw back some money, not only to pay the fines it has received over the emissions-cheating debacle, but also to fund its move into electric and self-driving cars. Reducing its global workforce by 5%, it says, will save up to $3.9 billion.
The euro-zone economy is still too fragile to go it alone. It’s heavily reliant on European Central Bank stimulus measures for its recovery, said the bank’s president, Mario Draghi (paywall). That’s a signal that when the bank meets next month it will likely extend its €80 billion ($85 billion) per month bond-buying program beyond March.
Jimmy Choo put its best foot forward. Shares in the luxury shoe brand, so beloved by celebrities, rose by almost 4% (paywall) after it said revenue had grown in the third quarter—without giving any exact numbers. Luxury brands have been struggling, but Jimmy Choo pointed to China as a key reason for its return to like-for-like growth.
Quartz obsession interlude
Lily Kuo on China’s bid to modernize African agriculture. “Their goal isn’t just updating African farming but giving Chinese companies a foothold in new markets, a complicated combination that produces mixed results for both China and its African partners.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Behavioral economics can explain Donald Trump and Brexit. People prefer uncertainty, even when their prospects are worse.
Running won’t help you get fit. It doesn’t do much to reduce fat or build strength, and harms joints in the process.
Staying off Facebook is the key to happiness. People who quit the social network for a week reported improved satisfaction with their lives.
Surprising discoveries
Japan is hiding a treasure trove of propaganda kimonos. They showed nationalist images depicting close ties to Nazi Germany.
US-born pandas are struggling to adjust in China. They prefer American food and understand English better than Mandarin.
Your next bike helmet might be made of paper. The EchoHelmet, which uses a honeycomb structure, could be perfect for bike shares.
Lockheed Martin is building firefighting drones. The self-flying quadcopters use infrared and visible light to pinpoint blazes.
There’s a temporary tattoo that works like a stethoscope. It tracks your cardiovascular health, and could also make speech recognition more accurate.
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