25 talking points for better conversation at cocktails based on what I found interesting this week.
Global Street Smarts
1. There have been 18 missile test launches from North Korea so far in 2022.
+ US and South Korean officials note that North Korea is planning to conduct its first nuclear test since 2017
2. Kishida could become the first Japanese leader to attend a NATO summit: The Japan Times reports that PM Fumio Kishida is planning to attend a NATO summit slated for late June in Spain. This development would make him the first Japanese leader to participate in a Western alliance gathering.
3. NASA to launch three rockets from a private Australian spaceport: This will be NASA's first blast off from a commercial spaceport outside the United States.
4. The world had ten megacities in 1990, 33 in 2018, and will have 43 by 2030, says the United Nations. Over a third of their population growth will be in India, China, and Nigeria.
5. China's slowing economy: China will fall short of the government's annual growth target, expanding by 4.3 percent. That would be Beijing's worst full-year figure since 1990, excluding 2020, when the pandemic depressed activity.
6. Saudi eyes tripling of foreign tourists in 2022: Saudi Arabia aims to triple foreign tourism this year as pandemic restrictions ease, hajj pilgrims return, and the first elements of the crown prince's signature projects open.
7. Roughly 60 percent of all US imports coming from Asia are handled by ports on the West Coast, such as Los Angeles, Long Beach, Seattle-Tacoma, and Oakland.
8. Wow. 65% say most political candidates run for office 'to serve their own personal interests' - Pew
9. Biden is soo unpopular: The latest Politico/Morning Consult poll finds Biden's approval rating sinking to 39%, an all-time low and similar to where Trump stood at his June 2020 nadir
10. Over a quarter-million people watched the White House press briefing with K-pop group BTS.
11. QOTW #1: "There's really three parties in the United States: Republicans, Democrats, and Mayors." -- Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly (I)
12: QOTW #2: "If I wore beige, nobody would know who I am" -- Queen Elizabeth
13. Crypto influence-peddling: The number of lobbyists representing the crypto industry increased from 115 to 320 between 2018 and 2021, and the money spent on lobbying for the crypto sector quadrupled from $2.2mn to $9mn in the same period
14. The world's largest trial of a four-day work week started in the United Kingdom on Monday. In the six-month trial, more than 3,000 employees will work four days a week for the same pay.
15. Taco Bell opens its first 'Defy' restaurant that prioritizes ordering via app: The Verge reports its four drive-thru lanes are located in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota.
16. Sony eyes' independent' EV joint venture with Honda.
17. Ford to invest $3.7bn in Midwest US manufacturing amid electric vehicle push: FT reports the US carmaker will invest in assembly plants in Michigan, Ohio, and Missouri.
18. Moving cargo by e-bike is a super trend: Cargo e-bikes, like drones and autonomous robots, probably are the future for cities, where the problem of last-mile delivery is the hardest part of the supply chain to solve at scale.
19. Ad fraud is predicted to cost marketers $81 billion in 2022, and as malicious software and bot programming get increasingly sophisticated, this number only stands to rise.
20. Foo Fighters will honor the rock band's late drummer Taylor Hawkins with a pair of tribute concerts in September — one in London and the other in Los Angeles.
21. The NFL and E & J Gallo Winery announced that Gallo would be the official wine sponsor of the NFL.
+ E & J Gallo joins Anheuser-Busch (beer) and Diageo (spirits) at the NFL bar
22. Netflix enters a four-way race worth £80m to broadcast F1 in America: The Times reports the streaming service wants to move into live sport after the successful Drive to Survive documentary series.
23. Figure skating's minimum age to be raised to 17: DW reports there will be no figure skaters under 17 at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
24. Adidas has signed its first student-athlete NIL deal, inking the best women's amateur golfer Rose Zhang to a multi-year contract. The Stanford standout won the NCAA's 2022 D1 women's golf individual and team titles.
25. Manchester United spending for what? In the post-Ferguson era alone, United have spent roughly £1.2 billion on signings, and they have only one FA Cup, one Europa League, and a single League Cup to show for it.
-Marc
