Your Thursday Briefing

Donald Trump, North Korea, South China Sea | View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Thursday, November 9, 2017 [NYTimes.com »]( [Your Thursday Briefing]( By INYOUNG KANG AND CHARLES MCDERMID Good morning. Here’s what you need to know: Doug Mills/The New York Times • President Xi Jinping of China showered President Trump with hospitality, leading him on a tour of the Forbidden City on Wednesday, but experts say the personal contact [may not alter their divisions on pressuring North Korea](. The two meet again today, and are expected to give a joint statement. Our reporters in China and Washington note that [business deals are likelier outcomes than policy shifts]( and our video team tracks how Mr. Trump has [shifted over time from targeting China’s trade policy to praising Mr. Xi](. In a bit of unfortunate timing, three [U.C.L.A. basketball players]( were reportedly detained in China on suspicion of shoplifting and will not play an exhibition game in Shanghai on Friday. _____ • President Rodrigo Duterte ordered a [halt to construction on a sandbar in an area of the South China Sea]( that was putting the Philippines into conflict with China. This concession, a contrast to repeated Philippine challenges to China’s territorial claims, signals an effort to improve ties before a regional summit meeting in Vietnam this weekend. _____ • China’s projection of power is evident online, as well. Beijing [spends hundreds of thousands of dollars annually to buy ads]( on Facebook, a platform it blocks within China’s borders. Its propaganda videos target English-speaking audiences. But rather than the divisive content Russia spread to influence the U.S. presidential election, China highlights its own prosperity — and chaos and violence in the rest of the world. Our reporter’s conclusion: China is offering itself globally as an alternative to Western media. _____ • American voters [shunned Republicans]( up and down the ballot in off-year elections, pushing a diverse class of Democrats into office. The [Virginia governor’s race]( ended in a particularly forceful rebuke of President Trump. Our political correspondents outlined [key takeaways from Tuesday’s races]( and we collected [reactions from writers on the right and left](. _____ Rajat Gupta/European Pressphoto Agency • New Delhi’s air quality worsened yet again, prompting the [Indian authorities to close schools]( for nearly a week. A toxic cloud has lingered over the capital since Tuesday. “The health of children cannot be compromised,” a shocked official wrote on Twitter after seeing two children throwing up from the window of a school bus. _____ David Maurice Smith for The New York Times • A suburb of western Sydney, Australia, has shed its violent image, thanks to aggressive policing, government intervention and, not least, the vibrant Vietnamese food scene. “[Cabramatta]( has always been a good place for me,” said one of its many residents who arrived in the 1970s as a refugee from the Vietnam War. “I feel very homey here.” _____ Business Patrick Wack for The New York Times • Workers at an American [auto-glass plant owned by Fuyao Glass of China]( are voting on whether to unionize, a test of transnational labor relations and a personal challenge to the paternalism of Fuyao’s billionaire owner, the philanthropist Cao Dewang, above. • The U.S. Congress is considering [subjecting foreign investments to greater scrutiny]( a move focused on China. At the same time, [China released new details about a regulatory body]( with uncertain powers to calm its financial system. • Tencent, the [Chinese internet giant that owns WeChat, increased its stake in Snap]( the parent of Snapchat. The boost came after Snap posted losses that pushed its shares down as much as 20 percent. • The U.S. Justice Department [called on Time Warner to sell assets]( potentially including CNN, according to people briefed on the move. That invites a politically tinged legal battle over a pending merger with AT&T. • Amazon taught Alexa, its digital assistant, the Hindi-English hybrid known as Hinglish. Here’s how the device [fared with Bollywood lingo and Indian humor](. • U.S. stocks [were mixed](. Here’s a snapshot of [global markets](. In the News Todd Heisler/The New York Times • The massacre at a Texas church was captured on video. The images, according to an official briefed on the contents, show the gunman methodically shooting his victims in the head, including children, over seven minutes. [[The New York Times]( • The latest revelations from the “Paradise Papers,” a leaked trove of documents from an offshore firm: American universities are also using secretive overseas investments. [[The New York Times]( • In Catalonia, protests and a general strike shut down roads and services as leaders of the Spanish region’s secessionist movement sought to regain political momentum. [[The New York Times]( • Papua New Guinea warned the leaders of a standoff at the shuttered Manus Island detention center that they would be “apprehended” and dismissed calls to reopen the site. [[SBS]( • An Australian television journalist is winning praise for standing up to a heckler who hurled profane abuse while she was preparing a live report. [[News.com.au]( • Italian officials approved, after years of debate, a plan to divert large cruise ships farther from Venice’s landmarks like St. Mark’s Square, the Grand Canal and the Ducal Palace. [[The New York Times]( • Zookeepers in Australia were amazed to find two jelly-bean-size “puggles,” or infant echidnas. The indigenous egg-laying mammals have extremely secretive sex lives. [[ABC]( Smarter Living Tips, both new and old, for a more fulfilling life. Karsten Moran for The New York Times • Recipe of the day: Forget the usual side dishes and make [sweet-and-sour cauliflower](. • Want to give to charity? [Do your research](. • Here’s our guide to this holiday season’s [biggest video games and consoles](. Noteworthy [Jean Nouvel designed the Louvre Abu Dhabi as an archipelago at sea. Four piers support the dome and create a floating effect. The facades look out at the Persian Gulf.]Katarina Premfors for The New York Times • The Louvre Abu Dhabi, opening this week, is meant to [promote the Emirati capital as tolerant]( and work as a bridge between civilizations. Check it out in this [Daily 360 video](. • The Vuong family was found at sea after escaping postwar Vietnam on a rickety fishing boat. Decades later, they finally got the chance to [thank the merchant seamen who rescued them on the South China Sea](. • New research shows that there is [a seventh great ape species]( the Tapanuli orangutan. Scientists say it may be the most endangered, with only about 800 left in Indonesia. Back Story News of a [butter shortage in France]( spurred newsroom chatter about one of the country’s signature treats: the croissant (kwah-SAHN if you want to be French about it). Eric Gaillard/Reuters The last time we discussed the subject at such length may have been [2013, when the Cronut burst onto the scene]( fresh from the New York bakery of Dominique Ansel. (It’s a “Frankenpastry” hybrid that is half croissant, half doughnut.) But the croissant, it turns out, was always a hybrid. According to local lore and “Larousse Gastronomique,” it was created in Budapest in 1686, or Vienna in 1683, to celebrate the defeat of the Ottomans, and was later adopted by the French. The crescent shape, the story goes, was inspired by the Ottoman flag. We asked the head of [our Cooking department]( Sam Sifton, for a recipe — but it turns out, we’re still working on one. “We haven’t yet developed one that’s really, truly accessible to the home cook,” he told us. “Croissants are hard!” Here’s his advice: “We find the best ones we can at the bakery, eat a few and let the rest go a little stale, so we can use them in Melissa Clark’s incredible [recipe for a buttery breakfast casserole](. It may be the highest use of a croissant in the world.” Karen Zraick contributed reporting. _____ Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings and updated online. Browse past briefings [here](. We have briefings timed for the [Australian]( [Asian]( [European]( and [American]( mornings. And our Australia bureau chief offers [a weekly letter]( adding analysis and conversations with readers. You can sign up for these and other Times newsletters [here](. What would you like to see here? Contact us at [asiabriefing@nytimes.com](mailto:asiabriefing@nytimes.com?subject=Briefing%20Feedback%20(Asia)). ADVERTISEMENT FOLLOW NYTimes [Facebook] [FACEBOOK]( [Twitter] [@nytimes]( ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Morning Briefing: Asia Edition newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Change Your Email]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2017 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018