Your Friday Briefing

Myanmar, Donald Trump, South Korean Olympics | View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Friday, November 3, 2017 [NYTimes.com »]( Asia Edition [Your Friday Briefing]( By CHARLES MCDERMID Good morning. Here’s what you need to know: Nyunt Win/European Pressphoto Agency • Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s leader, [visited Rakhine State for the first time]( since the country’s military unleashed a campaign of violence against Rohingya Muslims two months ago, driving hundreds of thousands into Bangladesh. She showed little sign of acknowledging ethnic cleansing, as critics have urged. “I hope everything will go fine as local villagers handle the rebuilding process,” she said in one village. “We all have to try our best to live peacefully.” _____ Saeed Khan/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images • Conditions are deteriorating for more than 600 men barricaded inside Australia’s now-closed Manus Island detention center in Papua New Guinea. The U.N. warned of an “unfolding humanitarian emergency.” Here’s an [explainer on the crisis](. The standoff has drawn harsh scrutiny to Australia’s treatment of refugees and asylum seekers. The Hollywood star Russell Crowe, who grew up and lives in Australia, called it a national shame — and [offered to take in six of the men himself](. “Who else?” he tweeted. [This week’s Australia Letter]( explores what we see and what we miss when we discuss refugees all over the world. _____ Doug Mills/The New York Times • President Trump confronts newly empowered leaders in Japan and China on [his 12-day tour of Asia](. He arrives in Tokyo on Sunday. Mr. Trump, above at a cabinet meeting this week, backed off his threat to send the suspect in the terrorist attack in New York this week [to the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba](. But he called for the death penalty, and said the terrorism trial system, [known for swift, severe action]( was a joke. Prosecutors said [the suspect plotted the attack for months]( timed it to take the maximum number of lives, and even did a test run. _____ Al Drago for The New York Times • Republican lawmakers unveiled [the most sweeping rewrite of the U.S. tax code in decades]( tilting the country toward a tax system long championed by businesses. We’re assessing how the plan would affect the U.S. economy, but changes in mortgage deductions infuriated homebuilders. A trade spokesman said, “They are picking rich Americans and corporations over small businesses and the middle class.” _____ Darren Staples/Reuters • The fallout from sexual harassment revelations continues. [Gavin Williamson, above, was named Britain’s defense secretary]( after his predecessor, Michael Fallon, resigned. [Brett Ratner, a prominent Hollywood producer and director]( is facing allegations of harassment and assault. A former contestant on “The Apprentice” [is suing President Trump for defamation]( for insults after she accused him of unwanted advances. And the top news editor of [National Public Radio in the U.S., Michael Oreskes, resigned]( after being accused there, shortly after accusations surfaced related to his past tenure at The Times. _____ Jeon Heon-Kyun/European Pressphoto Agency • “Koreans are known to be last-minute buyers.” That’s one of the well-worn explanations for [why ticket sales for the Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, are grim]( only 341,327 of 1.07 million tickets had been sold. The poor sales revived questions about the organizing committee’s promotional efforts; if political turmoil and tensions with North Korea were dampening interest; and whether South Koreans even care much about winter sports. But at least [the Olympic outfits]( seem to be rolling out on time. Business Kim Kyung Hoon/Reuters • Alibaba’s quarterly results brought great news: Profit more than doubled as revenue jumped 61 percent (compared to Amazon’s 34 percent rise.) And bad news: All its businesses [apart from online shopping lost money](. • Li Ka-shing, the Hong Kong billionaire, sold his tallest building for $5.2 billion to a group of [Hong Kong investors and buyers from China]( in what some news outlets are calling the priciest real estate deal ever. • Jerome Powell, President Trump’s nominee [to head the Federal Reserve]( is expected to stay the course on monetary policy. • The investor Robert Mercer is retreating from the helm to the research arm of [his $50 billion hedge fund, Renaissance Technologies](. • The abduction of a Vietnamese businessman in Berlin has caused friction between Vietnam and Germany and could complicate a [trade deal between Vietnam and the E.U](. • The Bank of England [raised its main interest rate]( for the first time in a decade. • U.S. stocks [were mixed](. Here’s a snapshot of [global markets](. In the News Adi Weda/European Pressphoto Agency • Jakarta’s new governor, Anies Baswedan, kept a campaign promise to Islamist groups, closing a hotel resort linked to high-end prostitution. Above, he celebrated his election. [[Asian Correspondent]( • In India, the death toll rose to 29 from the explosion of a boiler at a state-run power plant in Uttar Pradesh. Politicians descended on the site and demanded investigations. [[The New Indian Express]( • A study commissioned by Uber calculated the amount of time the average car owner in Jakarta spends stuck in traffic or looking for parking: 22 days a year. [[Coconuts]( • A Chinese millionaire paid a record $10,000 for a dram — basically a single shot — of 1878 Macallan single-malt Scotch. The booze, tests proved, was fake. [[BBC]( Smarter Living Tips, both new and old, for a more fulfilling life. Heidi Younger • It’s possible to end your frustration and [fulfill your dreams](. Start by focusing on what you want, not just what you want to escape. • Think twice if your doctor suggests [using a stent to deal with cardiac pain](. • Recipe of the day: Double-down on flavor with [salmon in anchovy-garlic butter sauce](. Noteworthy Giulia Marchi for The New York Times • By the accident of timing, [a new film festival has become an early test]( of what is acceptable in “the new era” declared by President Xi Jinping of China. • A species of sea slug engages in what [researchers call kleptopredation]( — preying on creatures that have just eaten. The strategy could reshape the understanding of food chains. • The Turkish Open golf tournament runs through the weekend. We look at [how it came to be](. • The Great Pyramid in Egypt was examined using technology borrowed from particle physics, revealing [an unexpected 100-foot-long void]( inside. Back Story Sandor Ujvar/European Pressphoto Agency Clocks fall back an hour in the U.S. and Canada on Sunday — after having done so last week in Europe — with the end of daylight saving time. Clocks in parts of Australia have moved, too, in the opposite direction. The reason for the shift is contentious and confusing. (It isn’t for farmers, as you may have learned in school.) Historians have traced the notion for daylight saving time to Benjamin Franklin, who realized he was sleeping through some daylight hours while visiting Paris in the 18th century. But the first idea to actually move the clock hands [came from William Willett]( who unsuccessfully proposed daylight saving time to the British Parliament in 1908. Germany, seeking cost savings during World War I, heard the idea and enacted it in 1915. Three weeks later, the British followed, and other world powers were close behind, including the U.S. in 1918. Despite the common belief that U.S. farmers supported the change, they were actually the strongest lobby against the change because it disrupted their schedules, said David Prerau, the author of “Seize the Daylight.” “I don’t know how that ever became a myth, but it is the exact opposite,” he said. You can [find out more about daylight saving time here](. Daniel Victor contributed reporting. _____ Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings and updated online. Browse past briefings [here](. This briefing was prepared for the Asian morning. We also have briefings timed for the [Australian]( [European]( and [American]( mornings. 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)). 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