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The Steel market suffered a supply shock following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The supply disruptions of raw materials from Russia and Ukraine have led to a surge in prices and production costs globally. Ukraine and Russia are important exporters of iron ore, with outward shipments of 46.3 million tonnes and 25.7 million tonnes, respectively, in 2020.  Eastern European countries import a significant amount of iron ore from Russia and Ukraine. Poland imported 78% of its total ore shipments from Ukraine. Romania imported 35% from Ukraine, while Hungary imported 42.2% from Ukraine and 41.2% from Russia. The Czech Republic imported 78.4% from Ukraine and 14.2% from Russia.  Outside the EU, Turkey is a major importer of Russian and Ukrainian iron ore, with import shares of 12.7% and 6%, respectively. With subdued demand in China and the Ukraine-Russia war, the ' World Steel Association ' forecasts that steel demand will grow by 0.4% in 2022 to reach 1,840.2 million t...
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In 2021, the global operating nuclear power capacity stood at 389.5 GW(e), provided by 437 operational reactors in 32 countries. The total global capacity decreased by 3 GW(e) or 1% compared to 2020, but the electricity generation increased by 4%. 2653.1 TWh of nuclear power was supplied by nuclear reactors in 2021, slightly more than 2020, accounting for about 10% of total global electricity generation and more than a quarter of the world’s low-carbon electricity generation. In 2021, the U.S. produced the most nuclear energy. China was the second largest nuclear power producer for the second year in a row followed by France. In terms of the share of nuclear energy, France was on top with 70% of all power generated coming from nuclear fuel.
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Currently, there are 345,600 millionaires, including 737 cent-millionaires (wealth of USD 100 million or more) and 59 billionaires in New York City, making it the city that houses the most millionaires in the world. The U.S dominates the wealthiest cities list with 5 cities in the top 10 - New York (1), San Francisco Bay area (3), Los Angeles & Malibu (6), Chicago (7) and Houston (8). Tokyo is placed at the second spot with 304,900  millionaires, including 263 centi-millionaires and 12 billionaires. The billionaire population of the city is relatively less due to the even distribution of wealth. London comes in at fourth place with 272,400 millionaires, including 406 centi-millionaires and 38 billionaires. .  
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Human Development Index ( HDI ) 2021 measures the average achievement in three basic dimensions of human development—a long and healthy life, knowledge and a decent standard of living. The health dimension is assessed by life expectancy at birth.  The education dimension is measured by the mean of years of schooling for adults aged 25 years and more, along with expected years of schooling for children of school entering age.  The standard of living dimension is measured by gross national income per capita. The pandemic dealt a serious blow to human development worldwide. In the 2021 index, 90% of countries saw their HDI value drop. Only a third of very high HDI countries saw a decline in 2021 (compared with over 90% in 2020), whereas HDI scores of 60% of low, medium and high HDI countries declined.
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The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is aimed at regulating the process in which commercial entities/3rd parties target and collect data related to people in the European Union (EU). GDPR applies to all the entities that offer goods and services to the people in the EU, even if the entity is outside the EU. The fines levied for GDPR are usually very high. There are two tiers of penalties, which max out at 20 million euros or 4% of global revenue (whichever is higher), plus data subjects have the right to seek compensation for damages. The highest GDPR fine to date in an amount of 746 million euros, imposed by the DPA in Luxembourg against Amazon Europe Core S.à.r.l. in July 2021 due to non-compliance with general data processing principles. The second highest fine of 405 million euros  was recently levied on Instagram by Ireland's data privacy regulator for Instagram's handling of children's data.  
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The global demand for cotton exceeded 26 million tonnes (MT) during the 2021-22 season and is expected to remain at a similar level during the 2022-23 season as well. The robust demand for cotton has pushed the prices up more than 70% YoY. Cotton production in key countries is expected to vary in the next season: in the USA, production is projected to decline by nearly 6% as farmers switch to food crops, gains are expected in countries like Brazil (3.9%), China (1.9%), India (12%). Cotton production in Pakistan is estimated to decline following massive flooding in the country. The International Cotton Advisory Committee  (ICAC) has reduced the estimated cotton production for Pakistan from 1.5 million tonnes to 1 million tonnes for the next season.
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Rice is the staple food for over half of the world's population, and Asian countries grow and consume the majority of it. Chaotic rains, heatwaves and floods in major rice-producing nations (China, India and Bangladesh) are threatening to reduce rice production and fuel food inflation across the world. World Bank's agricultural price index suggests that maize and wheat prices were 2% higher in Aug 2022 compared to Jan 2022, while rice prices were about 6% higher. The world's largest producer and consumer of rice, China, has suffered a significant yield loss and is expected to import a record 6 million tonnes of rice in 2022/23, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. China imported 5.9 million tonnes of rice a year ago. According to the world bank, as of August 2022, at least 23 countries have implemented 33 food export bans, and at least seven have implemented 11 export-limiting measures. Any disruption in rice supplies could further increase food ...
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