We’ve summarised the top stories of the last week into an easily digestible briefing, so that you can stay up to date on what’s happening around the world. You can subscribe to receive the briefing in your inbox each week.

UK Business & Economics

1. Rishi Sunak is the now the UK’s Prime Minister as of the 24th October. He is set to sign off on a raise in taxes across the board with Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt. The aim will be to generate around £50 billion to plug a hole in public finances. 
2. No.10 has said that Rishi Sunak will not commit to increasing pensions in line with inflation, under a “triple lock” scheme. This comes after his predecessor Liz Truss said she was committed to the pension triple lock. The pledge means payments rise by whichever of the following is the highest – inflation, average earnings, or 2.5%.
3. Food inflation has risen 17% in the year to September according to the Office for National Statistics, with certain commodities such as cooking oil increasing by 65%. Second to cooking oil, was pasta which has increased by 60% and then tea at 50%.

International Business & Economics

1. European natural-gas prices fell below €100 per megawatt hour for the first time since Russia cut energy supply in June. This is largely due to lower demand as mild weather has reduced energy consumption and piling storage levels help to reduce concerns about winter shortage.
2. Canada’s central bank increased the interest rate to 3.75% – just an 0.5 percentage point increase. The European central bank, Federal Reserve, and Bank of England are all expected to increase interest rates in the near future by 0.75 percentage points however it is not confirmed.
3. Russia has withdrawn from a UN-backed deal to allow millions of tons of grain to be transported through the Black Sea. This will result in a possible “catastrophic” blow to the food supply of developing countries who have begun to rely on re-developing supply chains from Ukraine. 
4. Eurozone inflation has hit a record high of 10.7%, with this October figure putting the ECB under pressure to continue raising interest rates despite a sharp slowdown in growth in Q3.
5. China’s economy grew faster than expected in Q3, with GDP rising by 3.9%, yet the nation remains on track to deliver the weakest growth in almost four decades (excluding 2020).

UK Politics

1. UK Home Secretary – Suella Braverman – has been accused of breaking the law over the government’s treatment of asylum seekers. She has also been criticised for admitting to use her personal email to handle government business documents. 
2. UK Prime Minister – Rishi Sunak – has opened the door for a potential reversal on his decision to miss the COP 27 summit meeting. This has come after he received criticism from Alok Sharma and backbench MPs for failing to show interest in the “world’s most dangerous problem”. 
3. The Covid public inquiry has asked to gain access to Boris Johnson’s WhatsApp messages during his time as Prime Minister as part of its investigation into his decision making. 

International Politics

1. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Brazil’s presidential vote this Sunday with 50.8% of total votes. The leftist former president beat right-wing Bolsonaro in one of the tightest elections the country has ever seen, despite having been imprisoned on corruption charges in 2018 for almost two years. Lula has yet to form a Cabinet or propose any concrete plans to back up his populist remarks in the run-up to the elections, although it is suspected he will turn to his trusted aides, the majority of which were also imprisoned amid the largest corruption scandal Brazil has ever seen.
2. Thousands of German industrial workers went on strike this weekend over an escalating pay dispute. Europe’s largest industrial union is demanding an 8% wage increase for over 3.9 million employees, the highest pay demand since 2008.
3. Opinion polls suggest the Likud party will be the largest after the election on November 1st. The right-wing and religious coalition supporting Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving PM, is inching towards a majority in the Knesset.
4. A majority of justices on the US’s Supreme Court now appear skeptical of universities’ use of race as a factor of admission, with the practice known as ‘affirmative action’ allegedly discriminating against Asian Americans. A decision is expected by June.
5. Russia launched several missile strikes on Ukraine, including on the capital Kyiv, causing electricity and water shortages. The foreign minister tweeted that “critical infrastructure” had been hit and accused  Russia of targeting civilians.

Written by Philip Weaver and Rob Webb