Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
The European Central Bank releases its November report card. Analysts anticipate a modest increase (paywall) in bank lending to households and businesses for the month. The slow pace of growth is expected to validate calls for continued stimulus in 2017.
The US discloses preliminary trade data. Analysts expect that the US trade gap with other nations increased (paywall) in November, following the dollar’s renewed strength in recent months. America’s trade deficit widened sharply in October (paywall) to $42.6 billion, as exports fell following a summer surge and imports rose.
The Obama administration prepares sanctions on Russia. US officials are close to announcing punitive measures in response to Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election, which could include both diplomatic and economic sanctions. A representative for Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said “any action against Russian diplomatic missions in the US will immediately bounce back on US diplomats in Russia.”
While you were sleeping
The world reacted to John Kerry’s speech on Israel. After the US Secretary of State said Israel will never get “true peace” if it does not reach an accord with Palestinians based on a two-state solution, other politicians weighed in. Republican Senator John McCain called the speech a “pointless tirade,” (paywall) while Democrats responded with more ambivalence. In Europe, politicians sided openly with Kerry. “The more there are settlements, the less it is likely there will be a two-state solution,” said French Foreign Affairs Committee vice president Nathalie Goulet.
Japan’s defense minister visited a controversial war memorial. Just one day after prime minister Shinzo Abe visited Pearl Harbor with Barack Obama, defense minister Tomomi Inada visited the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, which honors fallen Japanese soldiers in WWII including several that were executed for committing war crimes. Abe’s last visit to the shrine was in 2013—since then, at every annual anniversary of Japan’s defeat, the task has been delegated to other officials.
Colombia approved amnesty for thousands of guerrilla insurgents. After signing a peace deal with FARC, a decades-old rebel group, the country’s congress passed a law that will free FARC fighters from prosecution for “minor crimes.” It’s estimated there are 7,000 members of FARC in Colombia.
India chose a successor for a political icon. Party leaders have elected Sasikala Natarajan to replace Jayalalitha as the head of the AIADMK party in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. Sasikala was a longtime friend of Jayalitha, who was known throughout India for her autocratic style of rule and cult of personality.
Debbie Reynolds died at 84. The actress was best known for playing gifted singer Kathy Seldon in the Hollywood musical Singin’ in the Rain. She died one day after her daughter, actress Carrie Fisher, passed away.
Quartz obsession interlude
Leslie Josephs looks at terrible tourism slogans from around the world. “While a slogan usually takes a backseat to other drivers of tourism—attractions, favorable exchange rate, Instagram cachet (I’m looking at you, Kyrgyzstan)—it can help change a country’s image. The UK travel site Family Break Finder gathered and mapped the English-language slogans from tourism boards around the world. Some could definitely use the Don Draper touch.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Small talk makes us better people. The world seems more hostile when everyone has their eyes on their gadgets.
Companies should favor teamwork over individual success. Even selfish people become more cooperative when they identify with a group.
“Adulting” is actually pretty great. Sending children the message that being a grown-up is bad leaves us with kids who refuse to grow up.
Surprising discoveries
“Moonbows” are the rainbows of the night. Only two places on earth experience them regularly: Victoria Falls on the Zambia-Zimbabwe border, and Cumberland Falls in Kentucky.
It’s pretty easy to tamper with someone else’s flight plan. Hackers are able to figure out—or even predict—six-digits flight confirmation codes.
Donald Trump is a rooster in China. A mall in the northern city of Taiyuan erected a statue depicting the US president-elect as the farmhouse bird ahead of the Year of the Rooster.
There’s a breathalyzer that can diagnose up to 17 diseases. Many illnesses, ranging from kidney cancer to multiple sclerosis, have their own unique “breathprint.”
A New York Uber driver hit 240 green lights in a row. Noah Forman recorded the half-hour streak, which beat his previous record of 186 consecutive green lights.
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