Europe Leads in EV Sales, but for How Long?

The Briefing

• 93 countries voted in favor of suspending Russia from the UN’s Human Rights Council, including all NATO member countries
• 24 countries voted against the resolution, including; China, Iran, and North Korea

Russia Has Been Suspended From the UN Human Rights Council

On April 7, 2022, the United Nations suspended Russia from its seat on the Human Rights Council.

This suspension comes amid growing condemnation of Russia over alleged civilian murders committed by Russian troops in Ukraine. Widely distributed videos appear to show the bodies of civilians scattered along the streets in the Ukrainian town of Bucha.

To be approved, the resolution required a two-thirds majority of assembly members that vote “yes” or “no”. Here is a complete list of how countries voted:

Not surprisingly, all NATO countries voted in favor of suspending Russia from the Council. This includes Turkey, which has taken a more neutral stance than other allies since the invasion began. Altogether, 93 countries voted for the resolution.

On the other side, 24 countries voted against the resolution. China is perhaps the most significant “no” vote, citing a lack of openness and transparency in the process. Of course, Russia itself voted against the resolution.

A number of countries abstained from voting, most notably, India. Leading up to the vote, Moscow indicated that even an abstention would be viewed as an “unfriendly gesture” with consequences for bilateral ties.

This suspension adds to the list of actions taken against Russia—including heavy sanctions—as the country becomes more isolated from the international community—particularly Western nations.

What Does the UN Human Rights Council Do?

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is a UN body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world.

The Council investigates breaches of human rights in UN member states and member countries address big picture human rights issues.

How Does the UN Human Rights Council Work?

The Council consists of 47 members, elected yearly by the General Assembly for staggered three-year terms.

Using the UN regional grouping system, members are selected to represent a diverse and fair mix of countries from around the world. Until its suspension, Russia was one of the two countries representing Eastern Europe, along with Ukraine.

Members are eligible for re-election for one additional term, after which they relinquish their seat.

Where does this data come from?

Source: The United Nations

Correction: An earlier version of this graphic had a Colombian flag in the “abstain” section. It has been replaced with the correct flag, Cambodia. Austria was also erroneously grouped with NATO countries.

The Briefing

• Housing affordability can vary significantly from city to city
• $1 million USD can buy over 6 times more space in Dubai than in Hong Kong

How Much Real Estate Could You Buy for $1 Million?

“There are three things that matter in property: location, location, location”

Those are words from Harold Samuel, a British real-estate mogul from the 1900s. Broadly speaking, it’s a quote that still holds true—property values in the world’s best cities have always been worth a pretty penny.

The scarcity of real estate is driven by trends such as urbanization, which is the migration of people into cities. While the first examples of cities were built thousands of years ago, it was only recently that the majority of the population began to live in them. In fact, the urban population just overtook the rural population for the first time in 2007.

Of course, certain cities simply hold more appeal for wealthy people, and as a result, competition in the prime real estate market can be fierce.

To learn more about the sky-high cost of prime property in cities, this infographic visualizes data from Knight Frank’s Prime International Residential Index (PIRI 100).

What’s a Million Dollars Good For?

The following table lists the number of square feet that you could buy with one million dollars in various cities. We’ve included more cities on this list than in the graphic to create a more comprehensive comparison.

Monaco, the most expensive city on this list, is incredibly land-constrained with an area of just 0.78 square miles. For context, New York’s Central Park is 1.31 square miles in size.

In second place is Hong Kong, which has become notorious for its difficult real estate market. Just 7% of the city is zoned for residential use, which pushes many of its citizens into sub-100 square feet micro apartments. These housing units offer grim living standards and are often referred to as “coffin homes”.

On the other side of the spectrum, Hong Kong recently set the record for the most expensive home in Asia. A 3,378 square foot penthouse sold for $59 million in 2021, translating to $17,500 per square foot.

What is Prime Real Estate?

You may be wondering what prime real estate is.

Knight Frank defines it as “the most desirable and expensive property in the area, generally defined as the top 5% of the market by value.” This suggests that the prices visualized above are on the upper end of the scale, and that more attainable homes are available.

» If you’re interested in urbanization, consider this infographic which ranks the 20 largest cities in the world.

Where does this data come from?

Source: The Knight Frank Prime International Residential Index (PIRI 100)