Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
US bank-earnings season begins. JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup are expected to report higher quarterly profits compared with last year, when low oil prices took a toll. Analysts are still wary of slowing economic growth and wondering if the Trump administration’s promised deregulations will materialize.
Weekly US jobless claims. Investors are looking for further signs of the labor market tightening, after the US posted its biggest drop in state unemployment benefits claims in nearly two years for the week ended April 1.
NASA unveils new discoveries about “ocean worlds.” The US space agency will discuss findings based on data from the Hubble telescope and Cassini probe of Saturn at 2pm ET. Of particular interest is the Jovian moon Europa, which could be harboring life in its giant salt-water ocean.
While you were sleeping
Uber hit the streets of Taiwan again. The ride-hailing service was suspended in February over its use of private drivers and slapped with roughly $36 million in fines. It has now struck a deal with the government to partner with car rental companies and taxi firms instead.
Brazil boosted Carrefour’s bottom line. The French retailer (the world’s second largest by revenue) recorded a 6% bump in sales (paywall) in its first quarter, thanks to rising gasoline prices and robust growth in Brazil, where the real is up 5% against the US dollar this year. That all helped Carrefour balance out slowing sales in China.
Baidu added another AI company to its Silicon Valley stable. China’s internet behemoth is buying US vision-technology startup xPerception to help with its driverless car project. No word on how much it paid for xPerception. In March, Baidu announced it would open a second research facility in Silicon Valley as part of its mission to develop AI and self-driving technologies.
China’s exports rose at their fastest pace in nearly two years. Exports jumped by more than 16% in March from a year earlier, while imports rose 20%, leaving China with a trade surplus of about $23 billion. Donald Trump’s abrupt change of attitude towards China—he told the Wall Street Journal the country was not a currency manipulator (paywall)—is brightening the country’s economic outlook.
Quartz obsession interlude
Chase Purdy on the lab-grown meat company that’s about to go global. “The Good Food Institute has rapidly made a name for itself by offering strategic support to and lobbying on behalf of meat alternative companies. GFI thinks Brazil offers an opportunity to strike while the iron is hot, thanks to a recent scandal at Brazil-based JBS, the world’s largest meat packer.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Singapore can’t keep marketing its heritage while pursuing relentless development. The government’s planned closure of an historic street food market argues for more attention to its living heritage.
Active fund managers are failing us. Funds with human stockpickers consistently underperform compared to “passive” index funds that automatically track the broader market.
Donald Trump still needs Steve Bannon. The president’s chief strategist is the only member (paywall) of Trump’s White House with a strategic brand and a consistent worldview.
Surprising discoveries
Star Trek’s “tricorder” medical scanner is closer to becoming a reality. Two brothers won the XPrize’s grand prize with a similar device to the TV show, in that it measures vitals and diagnoses 13 ailments.
“DJ Sumirock” is an 82-year-old Japanese woman. The octogenarian learned to DJ in her old age and spins electronic music at a club in Tokyo.
Super-memes are becoming a regular thing. Thanks to Pepsi, United Airlines, and Sean Spicer, last week was a particularly good week (paywall) for internet snark.
Men have bigger brains, but not in the area of intelligence. Women’s brains are bigger in the regions of the brain associated with intelligence.
Jeff Bezos isn’t the highest-paid Amazon employee. Amazon Web Services boss Andrew Jassy pulled in more than $35 million in stock and salary last year.
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