From unprecedented numbers of displaced people to the year’s two marathon records, to unprecedented global temperatures, here are the ten records that marked 2023.

114 million displaced

Conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar, Democratic Republic of Congo, humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, Somalia: never before have the numbers of displaced people in the world been so high, with 114 million counted by the end of September, according to the latest data from UNHCR. Since then, the war between Israel and Hamas following the unprecedented Oct. 7 attack has displaced an additional 1.7 million people in Gaza, according to the UN.

Global temperatures on the rise

The average temperature on the planet’s surface reached record highs in the first ten months of the year, according to the European Copernicus Observatory: from January to October, the mercury showed an average of 1.43 degrees Celsius more than the period 1850-1900. 2023 is expected to be the hottest year on record on average.

India, the country with the largest population

India has dethroned China as the most populous country, with more than 1.425 billion people, according to the UN. China’s population peaked at 1.426 billion in 2022 and has since started to decline, while India’s population continues to grow, according to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

European interest rates at their peak

To tame inflation, the European Central Bank raised its key interest rates 10 times in a row, taking its prime rate this year to a record high of 4%, weighing on consumption, investment, housing and ultimately growth in the eurozone.

The thirst for black gold is not abating

Oil demand is expected to hit new records in 2023 and then 2024 at 102 to 103 million barrels per day, according to the International Energy Agency. The thirst for fossil fuels remains too great to meet climate targets, despite the “impressive” leap forward in clean energy, the ILO warns.

Salty fine for Facebook

Facebook’s parent company, US-based Meta Group, has been fined a record €1.2 billion by the Irish regulator, acting on behalf of the EU, for breaching European data protection rules, the famous General Data Protection Regulation (RGPD) which entered into force in 2018 and has become a global benchmark in the field.

Double marathon record

Marathon world records were broken twice this year: in the men’s by a virtually unknown 24-year-old Kenyan, Kelvin Kiptum (2hrs 35secs), and in the women’s by a virtual 27-year-old Ethiopian novice, Tigst Assefa (2hrs 11mins 53secs ).

The tennis player with the most titles

Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic became in 2023 the tennis player with the most titles of all time, winning a 23rd Grand Slam title at Roland Garros in June and then a 24th title at the US Open in September – the same as the legendary Australian tennis player Margaret Court, the who had collected 24 Grand Slam titles in the 1960s and 1970s.

Freddy always on top

An auction of 1,400 items belonging to the legendary Queen singer Freddie Mercury brought in €46.5m in September, a record for such a collection. The grand piano, on which he composed all his hits, starting with “Bohemian Rhapsody”, was sold for 2 million euros.

The oldest dog in the world

Bobby, who was named the world’s oldest dog by Guinness World Records in February, died aged 31 in October in a small village in central Portugal. Rafeiro breed, whose life expectancy does not exceed 14 years, lived surrounded by cats. Perhaps this was the secret of his longevity…