Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
OPEC members fight over who will cut back on oil production. Kingmaker Saudi Arabia is under pressure to reduce its output at the Vienna meeting, but the de facto leader wants Russia, Iran, and Iraq to hold back instead. Crude oil prices fell 4% on doubts that a deal could be reached.
UK banks are under the microscope. The Bank of England will publish stress tests results for Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland, Standard Chartered and the UK arm of Spanish bank Santander.
Volkswagen reports on its emissions settlement. In a US court hearing, the carmaker will mark its progress on several class-action lawsuits involving 80,000 vehicles. VW could be questioned about whether the cheating scandal runs deeper than it has already admitted.
While you were sleeping
Amazon is planning a touchscreen Alexa device. Bloomberg reports that the new device, expected in the first quarter of 2017, will build on the success of its popular display-less Echo, Dot, and Tap gadgets. A seven inch screen, tilted upwards so that it could be easily read from a countertop, could make it easier to read the news and shop on Amazon.com.
The US economy did even better than expected in Q3. Gross domestic product grew by 3.2%, revised up from the previous estimate of 2.9%, due to improved consumer spending and soybean exports. A solid economy could ease the way for a Fed rate hike next month.
Donald Trump filled health and transportation cabinet spots. Rep. Tom Price, a harsh critic of Obamacare, was nominated as secretary of health and human services; former Bush administration official Elaine Chao was chosen as the new transportation secretary. Meanwhile, the president-elect met with Goldman Sachs chief operating officer Gary Cohn to discuss running the treasury department.
ISIL took responsibility for the lone wolf attack at Ohio State. The terrorist group described Abdul Razak Ali Artan as one of its soldiers via its internal news agency. The Somali immigrant, who attempted to run over pedestrians with a car and stabbed bystanders on Monday, was shot dead by a police officer.
Quartz obsession interlude
Kevin Delaney on how things get weird when a startup hits 150 employees. “In retrospect, it’s easy to see why our flat management structure, with limited hierarchical levels and consensus-based decision-making, ceased being as effective as it once was. … While we had heard some of these concerns earlier, they really came to a head as the company reached 150 people.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Narendra Modi’s so-called “demonetization” is cruel and wrong. Pulling India’s banknotes really amounts to expropriation, and hits the poor while doing little to stop corruption.
Google is trying to reshape geopolitics. Its Jigsaw incubator wants to be politically neutral while also assisting activists and journalists.
Second-tier athletes are treated like serfs. Almost half of professional soccer players make less than $1,000 per month during punishing, short-lived careers.
Surprising discoveries
Estonia’s military travels with pop-up saunas. Until recently, soldiers were required to take at least one sauna a week (paywall).
The UK’s new £5 note is made with animal fat. Vegetarians and some religious groups are outraged.
The world’s oldest living person lives on raw eggs. Italy’s Emma Morano, 117, has two per day, “and that’s it,” she says. “And cookies.”
Canadian drunk drivers may be punished with Nickelback. They’ll be forced to listen to the world’s most hated band on the way to jail.
A UK government aide was photographed with embarrassing Brexit notes. They suggested a “have cake and eat it” exit strategy from the European Union.
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