The Reuters Daily Briefing

 

The Reuters Daily Briefing Friday, November 4, 2022 by Linda Noakes

Hello Here's what you need to know. Russia signals a retreat in southern Ukraine, Scholz tests the waters with a visit to China, and stocks rally ahead of U.S. jobs data

Today's biggest stories A view of the Twitter logo at its corporate headquarters in San Francisco, October 28, 2022 U.S. Twitter temporarily closed its offices after telling employees they will be informed by email later in the day whether they are being laid off. The move follows a week of uncertainty about the company's future under new owner Elon Musk. Global stocks rose for the first time in three days ahead of key U.S. jobs data, as investors took heart from reports China may relax its COVID rules, boosting major currencies against the dollar and prompting a 2% rally in oil. The downturn in the euro zone economy has deepened as high inflation and fears of an intensifying energy crisis hit demand, adding to evidence the bloc is heading for a winter recession. A closely-watched survey showed euro zone October business activity contracted at the fastest pace since late 2020. The Group of Seven rich nations and Australia have agreed to set a fixed price when they finalize a price cap on Russian oil later this month, rather than adopting a floating rate, sources said. Pentagon leaders plan to meet with defense industry executives next week to discuss ways to tackle supply-chain problems, a U.S. official told Reuters, amid an expected surge in demand for weapons from U.S. allies due to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Starbucks topped Wall Street estimates for quarterly comparable sales and profits, saying it will weather any coming recession by selling customized cold drinks through its rewards app to grow its ranks of younger, wealthier customers. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz meets Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, November 4, 2022 WORLD Chinese President Xi Jinping met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the first G7 leader to visit China since the COVID pandemic began, warning of the ease with which mutual political trust can be destroyed. Scholz's one-day visit is testing the waters between China and the West after years of mounting tensions. South Korea said it scrambled warplanes in response to 180 North Korean military flights near the countries' shared border, hours after the North fired about 80 artillery rounds in protest at Seoul's joint military drills with the United States. A Russian-installed official in southern Ukraine said Moscow will likely pull its troops from the west bank of the Dnipro River in Kherson and urged civilians to leave, possibly signaling a retreat that would be a setback to Russia's war. Here's what you need to know about the conflict right now. Iran held state-sponsored annual rallies marking the 1979 seizure of the U.S. embassy in Tehran, as the clerical establishment that has ruled since then battles nationwide protests calling for its downfall. The party of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, who survived an apparent assassination attempt yesterday, will hold nationwide protests until its demand for political change in the country is met, a close Khan aide said. People visit an early voting location in Smyrna, Georgia, November 3, 2022 U.S. Democratic candidates across the U.S. are intensifying their efforts to stave off what increasingly looks like a Republican wave that could result in the loss of more than 20 seats in the House of Representatives and perhaps control of both chambers of Congress. President Joe Biden's judicial nominees appear nowhere on the ballot in Tuesday's midterms but his ability to keep reshaping the federal judiciary hinges on the election results. Several Republican candidates for governor and secretary of state are election deniers in battleground states that play a decisive role in presidential elections. We explain what they could do in 2024 if they win next week. As former President Donald Trump considers launching a third bid for the White House, we look at what happens if Biden decides not to run again. Defense lawyers opened their case in the trial of Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes and four others over their alleged roles in the attack on the Capitol, arguing the defendants were in Washington to do security work and did not plot to stop the transfer of presidential power.

Quote of the day "We continue to find ourselves on the brink of a delicate precipice and we do not want to fall" Pope condemns global race to rearm

Video of the day Delhi shuts primary schools as air quality worsens Authorities in New Delhi have ordered primary schools to shut as air in the world's most polluted capital has become a severe risk to health.

And finally… Tongan volcano eruption unleashed highest plume on record The plume unleashed by the eruption in the Polynesian archipelago in January became the first one documented to have penetrated a frigid layer of the atmosphere called the mesosphere, according to scientists who employed a novel technique using multiple satellite images to measure its height.

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