The IMF talks Trump, Venezuela’s GM grab, photobombing icebergs

[Quartz - qz.com]() Quartz Daily Brief sponsored by Good morning, Quartz readers! What to watch for today Donald Trump meets the Italian prime minister. Paolo Gentiloni is at the White House to [discuss the upcoming G7 summit]( in Sicily, which will be the US president’s first overseas trip. World finance leaders gather in Washington. The IMF and World Bank’s spring meeting will, unsurprisingly, be focused on how [Trump’s “America First” policies]( could affect global trade. IMF director Christine Lagarde is reportedly aiming to educate the Trump administration about the IMF’s agenda. China launches its first cargo spacecraft. The unmanned [Tianzhou-1 takes off Thursday night]( at 7:41pm local time (7:41am ET) from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Centre. It’s designed to resupply China’s space station, Tiangong 2, which is scheduled to be permanently manned by 2022. Sponsor content by Accenture Accenture has 5,000 patents and patent-pending applications. Technology is changing faster than ever before, disrupting markets and reshaping businesses. With its [innovation-led approach]( and unmatched experience spanning more than 40 industries, Accenture is helping clients imagine and invent their future in a demanding new digital world. While you were sleeping Venezuela seized a GM plant. GM said the plant, which employs 2,600 workers in the industrial hub of Valencia, was [taken over by authorities]( who halted operations and seized assets. The country’s auto industry is in crisis due to the ongoing economic meltdown. Three people were killed in [mass protests]( against president Nicolás Maduro on Wednesday. Unilever celebrated with an ice cream… The world’s third-biggest consumer group, which fought off a takeover bid from Kraft Heinz in February, said new products like [chocolate-coated Magnums in a tub]( helped the ice-cream division in the first quarter. The almost 3% rise in quarterly sales was mainly due to price increases, Unilever said. …While Nestlé cried into its chocolate milk. Unilever’s Swiss rival had a sluggish first quarter, thanks in large part to North American consumers [turning away from packaged foods]( (paywall)—even Easter didn’t boost Nestlé’s confectionary business. Mike Pence demanded a level playing field with Indonesia. After meeting with Indonesian president Joko Widodo today, the US vice president said Washington wanted a “win-win relationship” between the two countries. Indonesia is accused of running [a trade surplus with the US](. Widodo, who leads the world’s most populous Muslim nation, has been critical of Trump’s immigration policies. Australia made it harder to become an Australian. Applicants for citizenship will be tested on their commitment to integration and [Australian values](. The length of permanent residency required to earn citizenship was also extended from one year to four. The changes come two days after prime minister Malcolm Turnbull announced [restrictions on visas for foreign workers](. Quartz obsession interlude Marc Bain on Amazon’s patent for an automated on-demand clothing factory: “Standard operating procedure in the apparel industry goes like this: Make clothes, and then sell them. … But Amazon, the ecommerce giant steadily growing into the largest apparel seller in the US, has another idea.” [Read more here](. Matters of debate The big winner in the French election will be Vladimir Putin. Three of four leading candidates [are pro-Putin](. Live crime is the beast Facebook can’t control. Relying on user reports [has its limits](. America’s credibility is rapidly vanishing. The preponderance of fake news and conspiracy theories spread by Trump and his supporters is [eroding its allies’ trust]( (paywall). Quartz announcement Quartz Index indicator of the day: [$5.8 million](. That's the average amount the 12 best-paid YouTube stars made in the year starting in July 2015. Learn why that number may fall for this year and explore other indicators at the new [Quartz Index](. Surprising discoveries Silicon Valley invested $120 million in a juicer that does nothing. Juice packs for the Juicero can just as [easily be squeezed by hand](. Amazon is using peer pressure to keep workers from calling in sick. German warehouse employees only get a bonus [if their coworkers show up](. A massive traveling iceberg is photobombing a Canadian village. Newfoundland’s “iceberg alley” is hosting a record crop this year [due to rising temperatures](. The war in Syria has been great for North Korea. Pyongyang is [getting rich]( selling weapons to the Assad regime, and gaining valuable military expertise in return. China put Richard Gere out of work. The star says his outspoken advocacy of Tibet has led Hollywood to stop placing him in big-budget movies [meant to reach audiences in China](. Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, conspiracy theories, and superfluous juicers to hi@qz.com. You can follow us[on Twitter]( for updates throughout the day or download[our apps for iPhone]( and[Android](. Want to receive the Daily Brief at a different time? [Click here]( to change your edition. To unsubscribe entirely, [click here](. Enjoying the Daily Brief? [Click here]( to pass it along to a friend. Like us on [Facebook]( and follow us on [Twitter](. Quartz | 675 Avenue of the Americas, 4th Fl | New York, NY 10011 | United States