World

Real estate

Study Reveals The Average Price of Homes in Capital Cities, Based on Local Listings

Times are weird on the property market — and on a global scale. The COVID pandemic radically shook up our view of where and how we desired to live, and it also fundamentally changed many peoples’ options for doing so. On balance, prices grew; but now, in the fallout of the pandemic and with the added complication of the energy crisis and war in Ukraine, they’re on their way down.

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Cultural cartographyInternet

The world’s most streamed artists on YouTube

In 2022, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) acknowledged that YouTube is now one of the “pillars in people’s music discovery.” And they created a framework for the official pop charts worldwide to include YouTube plays in their estimates. So which music — new and old — are the listenerships from country to country discovering? And then sticking on replay, free from the risk of wearing out the record?

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Cultural cartographyEconomic maps

A comprehensive guide to tipping in 162 countries, mapped

To tip or not to tip – that is the question. Whether or not you hand extra money to a bellhop or round up the eatery bill often relies on a country’s local traditions. For instance, if you live in the United States, you know that tipping is pretty much always expected by specific employees in the service industry, like bartenders and servers, who usually rely on tips to make up the prevalence of their earnings. In other nations, like Japan, staff will probably see a tip as insulting.

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Laws

Which countries get the most paid vacation days?

After decades of social evolution and improvements to work-life balance, contradicting pressures are fragmenting the work world’s method of paid leave. Companies struggling to attract talent are paying employees more, leaving businesses understaffed but with a steep payroll to meet and an unwillingness to give time off. In 2022, only 35 percent of American companies offer paid maternity leave–a shocking drop from 53 percent just 2 years ago, according to a study from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). For paid paternity leave, the drop is from 44 to 27 percent in the same period.

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