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Employee benefits - Change in benefit obligation (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Overfunded pension plans
Change in benefit obligation
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at beginning of the year	$ 864	$ 1,298
Interest costs	58	74
Translation adjustment	(63)	(230)
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at end of the year	919	864
Overfunded pension plans | Present value of the defined benefit obligations
Change in benefit obligation
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at beginning of the year	3,105	4,006
Service costs	10	7
Interest costs	196	222
Benefits paid	(235)	(368)
Effect of changes in the actuarial assumptions	(330)	118
Translation adjustment	(208)	(880)
Transfers	295
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at end of the year	2,833	3,105
Underfunded pension plans
Change in benefit obligation
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at beginning of the year	641
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at end of the year	204	641
Underfunded pension plans | Present value of the defined benefit obligations
Change in benefit obligation
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at beginning of the year	4,632	4,421
Service costs	68	53
Interest costs	122	134
Benefits paid	(257)	(248)
Participant contributions	(31)
Effect of changes in the actuarial assumptions	(246)	271
Translation adjustment	(10)	1
Transfers	(295)
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at end of the year	3,983	4,632
Other benefits
Change in benefit obligation
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at beginning of the year	1,733
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at end of the year	1,428	1,733
Other benefits | Present value of the defined benefit obligations
Change in benefit obligation
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at beginning of the year	1,733	1,505
Service costs	1	18
Interest costs	33	64
Benefits paid	(56)	(53)
Effect of changes in the actuarial assumptions	(261)	243
Translation adjustment	(23)	(44)
Benefit obligation (Plan assets) as at end of the year	$ 1,427	$ 1,733

X

- Definition

The decrease (increase) in a net defined benefit liability (asset) resulting from actuarial gains (losses) arising from changes in financial assumptions that result in remeasurements of the net defined benefit liability (asset). Financial assumptions deal with items such as: (a) the discount rate; (b) benefit levels, excluding any cost of the benefits to be met by employees, and future salary; (c) in the case of medical benefits, future medical costs, including claim handling costs (ie the costs that will be incurred in processing and resolving claims, including legal and adjuster's fees); and (d) taxes payable by the plan on contributions relating to service before the reporting date or on benefits resulting from that service. [Refer: Net defined benefit liability (asset)]

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Name IAS
-Number 19
-IssueDate 2021-01-01
-Paragraph 141
-Subparagraph c
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- Definition

The decrease (increase) in the net defined benefit liability (asset) resulting from contributions to a defined benefit plan by plan participants. [Refer: Net defined benefit liability (asset); Defined benefit plans [member]]

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
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- Definition

The increase (decrease) in the net defined benefit liability (asset) resulting from employee service in the current period. [Refer: Net defined benefit liability (asset)]

+ References

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Line items represent concepts included in a table. These concepts are used to disclose reportable information associated with members defined in one or many axes of the table.

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- Definition

The increase (decrease) in the net defined benefit liability (asset) resulting from changes in foreign exchange rates. [Refer: Net defined benefit liability (asset)]

+ References

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- Definition

The increase (decrease) in the net defined benefit liability (asset) resulting from the passage of time. [Refer: Interest expense; Net defined benefit liability (asset)]

+ References

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- Definition

The amount of deficit or surplus in a defined benefit plan, adjusted for any effect of limiting a net defined benefit asset to the asset ceiling. [Refer: Defined benefit plans [member]]

+ References

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- Definition

The decrease (increase) in the net defined benefit liability (asset) resulting from payments from the plan. [Refer: Net defined benefit liability (asset)]

+ References

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- Definition

The increase (decrease) in the net defined benefit liability (asset) resulting from transfers.

+ References

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