Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
The Dalai Lama begins a touchy visit in northeast India. China claims the Arunachal Pradesh state is part of “south Tibet,” and it is treating the Tibetan Buddhist leader’s nine-day trip as a deliberate provocation by India.
Another attempt to find a solution for Syria. Foreign ministers, international organizations, and civil society groups gather in Brussels to discuss a plan for the war-torn country. Neither the Assad regime nor the Syrian opposition are invited.
Xi Jinping makes a stopover en route to the US. The Chinese president will visit Finland from Tuesday to Thursday. He’s guaranteed to get a warm welcome as the Nordic nation is keen on maintaining strong trade ties with China. (The Finns also love saunas.) Donald Trump’s protectionist policies have recently pushed Europe and China closer on trade and climate issues.
While you were sleeping
Asos put its best foot forward. The British online retailer, which has 14 million active customers, reported a 14% jump in profit in the six months to February. Unlike many struggling fashion retailers in the UK, Asos is growing briskly, and its share price has leapt by more than 80% over the past year.
The US stopped supporting the UN Population Fund. The State Department claimed it was withdrawing funding because the UNFPA supports “coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization” in China, which the UN agency called an ”erroneous claim.” Pulling the funds is part of Trump’s planned 28% budget cut for foreign aid.
WhatsApp mulled a move into digital payments in India. The Facebook-owned messaging app is planning to introduce peer-to-peer payments using a government-backed payment system known as UPI, according to a report in The Ken. WhatsApp hasn’t confirmed this, but it could be a smart move for the company, which has over 200 million users in India.
BMW wrestled the US sales crown back from Mercedes. In March, BMW edged past Mercedes in US sales, thanks to a leap in X3 and X5 SUV deliveries—but Mercedes is still number one for overall 2017 sales to date.
The South African rand kept tumbling. The rand suffered more losses (paywall) in early trading on Tuesday—down another 1.9% against the US dollar—as the country’s ongoing political crisis and yesterday’s S&P debt downgrade continues to roil investors. Moody’s is expected to follow suit on Friday by downgrading the country’s bonds to “junk” status.
Quartz obsession interlude
Tim Fernholz on the complex auto trade between the US and China: “Now that China is the largest car market on the globe, US firms are reluctant to complain too loudly about the lopsided rules for fear of being cut off completely—US firms and their joint ventures have a major share of the market.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
“Leaning in” isn’t working. Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg says women are no better off in the workplace four years after her best seller was published.
It’s risky negotiating with China when you don’t know what you want. If the White House can’t establish a coherent Asia policy, it may get suckered by Beijing.
Detroit is winning the race for autonomous cars. Google, Uber, and Tesla are ill-prepared to reach the masses.
Surprising discoveries
New Zealand’s postal service delivers KFC. It hopes fried chicken deliveries will help it offset major losses in its mail arm.
Dolphins like to tenderize their octopus prey. It’s the only way to avoid choking on zombie tentacles.
Salted doorknobs could help fight superbugs. Simple table salt is much cheaper than antimicrobial copper, and may be even more effective.
Coca-Cola put Warren Buffet’s face on cans in China. The soda group’s largest investor has tons of fans in China, who can now admire the 86-year-old as they chug Cherry Coke.
Britain, Canada, and Italy have the whiniest babies. Their rates of colic are the highest in the industrialized world.
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