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The Gen Z group led by Miraj Dhungana escalates their ongoing demonstrations, confronting police outside the prime minister's official residence in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Nov. 26, 2025.
Youth unemployment is making headlines from China to Canada, with many countries’ rates at historic highs. While the global youth unemployment rate for 2025 is projected to be slightly lower than that of 2020, at 12.8%, regional disparities abound. In developed countries, four in five workers aged 24-29 have a regular paid job, but in developing countries, that number is only one in five. Analysts blame the lingering fallout from COVID-19, economic uncertainty from trade wars, and the advent of artificial intelligence. The fallout is fueling Gen Z discontent, creating migration pressures, and threatening social unrest in nations around the globe.
The hot spots. Africa’s youth has been struggling, with an estimated 26.1% of those aged 15-24 not in employment, education or training as of 2022. At the same time, Africa’s population is the youngest on the planet – and projected to have the greatest growth in the next fifty years. Lack of employment prospects have already spawned Gen Z demonstrations in Kenya and Morocco, and a growing population could exacerbate that trend.
In contrast, many Asian countries, including Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, and Singapore, are experiencing demographic decline – but employment prospects for youth are also dropping. China’s official youth unemployment rate, which excludes students, reached a peak of 18.9% in August, before declining to 17.3% in October. South Korea’s youth unemployment rate hit 5.3% that same month, due to an increase in young graduates unable to find work. And in Nepal youth unemployment sits north of 20% – a factor in violent youth-led protests that toppled the country’s government in September.
South America is also experiencing high youth unemployment and attendant social unrest. According to the International Labor Organization, the youth unemployment rate is triple that of adults, with 60% of young people employed on the black market, without workplace rights and social protections. This year has seen Gen Z protests hit Peru and Mexico, over corruption, crime, poor job prospects, and the cost of living.
Why are young people failing to find work? From 2020-2023, the COVID-19 pandemic locked millions of young people out of classrooms and first jobs, delaying their entry into the labor market and widening skill gaps. Today, trade wars have caused further economic disruption: countries like Canada and China report layoffs and hiring freezes of young people due to high US tariffs and accompanying economic uncertainty.
But the top reason is AI, which is gobbling up clerical, customer-service and entry-level jobs that used to absorb first-time workers, particularly university graduates.
Some popular disciplines, like computer science, have cratered: a report by the United Kingdom’s National Foundation for Education Research found a 50% decline in job advertisements for software development and IT between 2020 and 2025, with four times as many postings for senior than junior programming roles. Another report by the British Standards Institution surveyed 850 business leaders across the UK, US, France, Germany, Australia, China and Japan: 39% said they had cut entry-level roles and replaced them with AI.
For geopolitics, that means three things. Gen Z protests could multiply, with frustrated out-of-work young people demanding change. If states cannot deliver it, they could clamp down, such as by using digital repression to prevent tech-savvy youth from mobilizing – a tactic already deployed in Nepal, China, and many African nations.
Unemployed young people will also put pressure on migration channels, notably to Europe and North America. Over half of young people in several North African nations report a desire to emigrate. Young Indonesians use the hashtag #JustRunAwayFirst to describe their frustration with domestic job prospects. The UN reported that 72 million international migrants originated from Asia in 2024, 13% more than in 2020, due in part to a sense of “futurelessness.”
The social contract could fray, including in authoritarian states. Prior to 2014, most Chinese believed that inequality was largely the result of individual failings in an ascendant China. By 2023, the majority blamed inequality on unequal opportunities, corruption, and a failing economy. Beijing is reportedly concerned about “involution,” a term that describes the feeling of futility young people feel about their lack of job prospects and ability to afford the “good life.”
What We’re Watching: Trump orders shutdown of Venezuela airspace, Honduras election on a knife edge, Migrant skepticism spreads
Two military jets fly in formation during the industrial air show.
Is the US attack on Venezuela imminent?
US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that the airspace above Venezuela should be seen as “closed in its entirety.” Caracas slammed the move and said it contravenes international law, while its citizens prepare for strikes. Trump’s announcement comes two days after he said the US would commence land strikes on the South American nation of over 26 million people – the White House has also been bombing boats in the Caribbean and building up its military presence there for months now. Amid signs that an invasion is imminent, there is also discontent emerging in Washington about the potential action, after a Washington Post report found that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth ordered the US military to kill two people on a drug-carrying boat – even after the boat had been destroyed. Trump will convene a meeting on Venezuela this evening.
Honduras’ election couldn’t be closer
Hondurans went to the polls yesterday to choose between two conservative candidates, former Tegucigalpa Mayor Nasry Asfura and former sports broadcaster Salvador Nasralla. Early results show that the two are neck in neck, with just 4,000 votes separating them. Their campaigns focused on jobs and crime, as Honduras has the highest homicide rate in Central America and unemployment hovers at 5.2%. US President Donald Trump has also weighed in, endorsing Asfura and saying he was the only candidate the White House would work with. Trump also pardoned the former president of Asfura’s party on Friday. As the vote rolls in with no clear winner yet, the candidates are showing signs that they may not accept the results, trading accusations of election fixing.
Skepticism of migrants and refugees spreads to developing nations
Amid burgeoning tensions with the Taliban, Pakistan has been rapidly expelling Afghans from its territory, removing one million of the three million Afghans from its borders this year alone. Many have never lived in Afghanistan. Pakistan isn’t the only developing country growing skeptical of migrants and refugees from war-torn nations: Uganda, once a safe haven for Africans fleeing war – as well as Afghans – has announced new restrictions on which refugees it will accept. Egypt, Kenya, and Somalia, are also moving to limit refugee arrivals. Where will those who are fleeing Afghanistan, the Sudan civil war, and other internal conflicts go?
People stay at a school, which is functioned as the temporary shelter at flooded area, on November 30, 2025 in Sumatra, Sumatra. The authorities in Indonesia were searching on Sunday for hundreds of people they said were missing after days of unusually heavy rains across Southeast Asia that have killed hundreds and displaced millions.
800: The death toll from the tropical storm that battered parts of Southeast Asia is now close to 800. Indonesia has been hit especially hard – at least 600 people have died there as the heavy rains caused floods and landslides. Meanwhile, a cyclone across the Bay of Bengal has left at least 350 people dead in Sri Lanka, prompting Colombo to declare a state of emergency.
10: In a one-page letter, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requested President Isaac Herzog end his corruption trial. It comes two weeks after US President Donald Trump sent Herzog a letter urging him to pardon Netanyahu. If convicted, Netanyahu could face up to 10 years in prison.
81,000: Government efforts to address climate change may be stalling, but the protests remain – at least on waters off the Australian coast. Hundreds of protestors took to their kayaks in Newcastle harbor to disrupt inbound shipping at the world’s largest coal export port on Sunday. Two protestors even managed to scale an 81,000-ton coal ship and unfurl a banner on the side of it.
13: Trump didn’t just pardon turkeys this Thanksgiving holiday: he also commuted the sentence of a private equity executive just 13 days into a seven-year sentence for securities and wire fraud. David Gentile, the executive, defrauded thousands of people in a scheme that raised $1.6 billion.
1: Pope Leo XIV made his first foreign trip over the weekend, visiting Turkey for three days before heading to the Lebanese capital of Beirut on Sunday. While in Turkey, he encouraged President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to help negotiate a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinian territories.
US President Donald Trump pardons a turkey at the annual White House Thanksgiving Turkey Pardon in the Rose Garden in Washington, D.C., USA, on Nov. 25, 2025.
Well, it’s about to be Thanksgiving in the United States. Although not all of our global readers celebrate that particular holiday, it’s still good to remind ourselves that while the world offers plenty of fodder for doomscrolling and despair, there are still lots of things to be grateful for too. Here’s a selection of five good news stories from around the world in 2025!
First, energy is getting cleaner, faster. This year, renewables quietly overtook coal as the planet’s top source of electricity – a milestone driven almost single-handedly by China’s clean-energy boom. Beijing added more solar capacity than the rest of the world combined, pushing solar-panel prices to record lows and making renewables the cost-effective choice for fast-growing power grids in the developing world. Across Africa, solar panel imports from China rose 60% over the last year, trends echoed from Malaysia to Mexico. Yes, the US wobbled a bit, with fossil-fuel use increasing and green-energy projects scuttled, but analysts still call 2025 a “turning point”: coal’s long, filthy reign is ending.
Second, people are much kinder than we think. Global data shows lost wallets are returned at about twice the rate people expect, according to the World Happiness Report. The researchers found that most of us dramatically underestimate the honesty of our neighbors. And that that optimism gap matters. The researchers found that believing you live among people who’d return your wallet turns out to be one of the strongest predictors of happiness. Big smiles to the Nordic countries, which top both the happiness rankings and the wallet-return charts.
Third, fragile but real diplomatic breakthroughs emerged in long-running conflicts. Whether you love or hate US President Donald Trump’s diplomatic style, he has made progress in stopping some of the world’s most intractable conflicts. In June, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Rwandan-backed M23 rebels agreed to US-brokered peace negotiations and signed a “comprehensive” peace framework in Qatar this month – their most concrete progress in years. Meanwhile, in August, Armenia and Azerbaijan’s leaders agreed to a political framework to end the 37-year long Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. And in Gaza, Hamas and Israel agreed to the first phase of a ceasefire. While the crucial second phase is riddled with challenges, the (mostly) sustained pause in violence has allowed for desperately-needed humanitarian aid to Gaza and diplomatic negotiations on the enclave’s future.
Fourth, stranded astronauts finally made it home. NASA’s Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams returned to Earth after an unplanned nine-month stay on the International Space Station. The pair were ferried back to earth by a SpaceX ship, which was greeted by dolphins when it splashed down off the Florida coast. Their eight-day mission stretched to more than a year after Boeing’s Starliner ran into trouble and couldn’t return back to earth, but they kept busy while waiting for their rescue: they ran experiments, went on spacewalks, and even celebrated Christmas in orbit. Williams now holds the record for most spacewalk hours by a woman.
And finally, the Smithsonian National Zoo is about to have another elephant in the room. Twelve-year-old Nhi Linh is expecting her first calf — the zoo’s first in 25 years! Early ultrasounds of the 150-pound fetus suggest everything looks healthy. The team is now reinforcing the enclosure for a newborn who is expected to arrive before spring, a symbol of home for a species with fewer than 50,000 living in the wild.
In news cycles that often swirl around negativity, these stories remind us that progress – whether in geopolitics or the pachyderm-population – marches on. Happy Thanksgiving!
Graphic Truth: Turkey is cheaper, but inflation still gobbles
One thing to be grateful for this US Thanksgiving is that a turkey dinner for 10 people has gotten cheaper for the third year in a row. That’s in line with a broader trend in which US inflation has cooled since hitting a 40 year peak back in 2022. But nearly 65% of Americans are still upset about rising prices, according to a recent Pew Research Poll. How to reconcile those two things? Look at the big picture. Americans have just been through the most inflationary five-year period since Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” topped the charts. That’s what shapes people’s perceptions, more than year-to-year data. And remember, even if inflation is only around 3%, that still means prices are only going in one direction: up. Here’s a look at the data – discuss it at the table!
What We’re Watching: Another glitch in Russia-Ukraine talks, UK Labour Party to raise taxes to record levels, Tensions spike in Syria’s third-largest city
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes US envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting in Moscow, Russia, on April 25, 2025.
Witkoff leak is only the latest glitch in Russia-Ukraine negotiations
A leaked recording of an October call between US special envoy Steve Witkoff and a senior Kremlin official is the latest drama to spill into the Ukraine peace talks. In the call, scooped by Bloomberg, Witkoff – already mistrusted by the Ukrainians – gives tips on how Russian President Vladimir Putin can soften up US President Donald Trump in negotiations. This follows the mini-drama in which US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was forced to affirm this week that the White House had “authored” an initial 28-point plan, after he reportedly told US senators that it hadn’t. Meanwhile Russia is still warning that it won’t accept a deal that strays from its red lines, while accusing Europe of “meddling” in the talks. With so much drama and division, we are keenly tuned in to see what plan, if any, emerges in the coming days.
Will the UK’s new budget right the ship?
The UK government will impose record tax hikes in order to balance the state’s finances while supporting more social spending, according to Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves’ new budget. The tax burden will reach 38% of GDP by 2030, the highest in UK history, with the help of a de-facto income tax rise and a new tax on homes worth above £2 million. Labour supporters will cheer the increased social spending but the higher overall tax burden, even on less affluent families, could sting at the polls. Markets swung forward and back in response to the announcement, suggesting they weren’t fully convinced by Labour’s efforts to balance its books. We’re watching to see how this bold fiscal move will affect Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his flailing government.
Syria’s sectarian tensions flare again after brutal double killing
The gruesome murder of a Sunni bedouin couple in the Syrian city of Homs has stoked sectarian tensions in one of the country’s largest cities. The husband and wife were found dead in their home, with sectarian epithets scrawled at the scene. The killings set off a brief wave of reprisals against local Alawites, the sect to which the now-ousted Assad dynasty belonged. Since overthrowing the Assad regime a year ago, President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former jihadist who has remade himself as a statesman, has struggled to contain sectarian violence, some of it stoked by his own men. The situation in Homs, a strategically located city that is home to Sunnis, Shia, Christians, and Alawites, is an important test case.
Palestinians walk in the rain at a makeshift camp in Gaza City, on Nov. 25, 2025.
20,000-25,000: As part of his vision for Gaza, US President Donald Trump is drawing on his background as a real estate guy, with plans to build a number of temporary residential compounds for Palestinians in eastern Gaza, each of which would house as many as 20,000-25,000 people. The aim is to entice Gazans sheltering elsewhere in the strip to move back to the area, which they were driven out of by the Israeli military. Officials say the first compound won’t be ready for months.
$40 billion: Taiwan will boost defense spending by $40 billion in order to face down the persistent threat from China, which considers the self-governing island part of its own territory. The US, which backs Taiwan, has called on Taiwan to fund more of its own military. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping reportedly discussed Taiwan this week. Meanwhile, for more on the rising tension between China and Japan over Taiwan, see our recent report here.
13: At least 13 people have died after a fire tore through a group of apartment buildings in Hong Kong on Wednesday. Hundreds of firefighters are at the scene seeking to quench the blaze. The cause remains unclear, but the buildings were enveloped in bamboo scaffolding, which the government had started to phase out in March over safety concerns.
46%: Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva would win in any plausible matchup in the 2027 presidential election, according to a new poll. In a face-to-face with São Paulo Governor Tarcisio de Freitas, Lula would win 46%, while the man widely considered the right-wing heir to former President Jair Bolsonaro would win 39%. The jailed Bolsonaro remains the kingmaker of the Brazilian right.
2: Cheers to this, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will open two more liquor stores for foreigners, one each in Jeddah and Dhahran. Last year they opened one in the capital, Riyadh as part of a wider modernization drive that is meant to bring more foreign tourists and workers into the country. Name us a cocktail! The Jeddah Julip? The Dhahran Daiquiri? Let us know your proposal, we’ll publish the best ones next week.