News

Hard Numbers: A leak kills in India, Americans trust governors, criminals stash cash, and the UK nosedives

13: A gas leak at a chemical plant in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh has left at least 13 dead and hundreds sick. The LG Polymers facility was attempting to reopen after idling for seven weeks under India's nationwide lockdown. Local police said the long period of inactivity had contributed to a chemical reaction that caused the leak.

71: All politics is local, the saying goes – especially, it seems, when it comes to pandemics. A whopping 71 percent of American voters told an FT/Peterson survey that they trust their own state governor over President Trump when it comes to deciding when to reopen the economy.

12.6 million: Lockdowns are evidently making it hard for criminals to move money around these days. Dutch money laundering investigators recently turned up 12.6 million euros in cash in a home in the city of Eindhoven, the largest find of its kind in the country's history. In case you wondered, the stash weighted more than five hundred pounds (255kg).

300: The Bank of England says the UK is set for its worst economic downturn in 300 years, as coronavirus-related lockdowns slash GDP by 30 percent in the first half of this year. For those with a macabre sense for history, 1720 was the year of Europe's last major outbreak of the Black Plague.

More For You

Mastercard Economic Institute's Outlook 2026 explores the forces redefining global business. Tariffs, technology, and transformation define an adaptive economy for the year ahead. Expect moderate growth amid easing inflation, evolving fiscal policies, and rapid AI adoption, driving productivity. Digital transformation for SMEs and shifts in trade and consumer behavior will shape strategies worldwide. Stay ahead with insights to help navigate complexity and seize emerging opportunities. Learn more here.

Miami Mayor-elect Eileen Higgins points as she thanks her staff and supporters on the night of the general election, on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025.
Carl Juste/Miami Herald/TNS/ABACAPRESS.COM

A Democrat won Miami’s mayoral race for the first time in nearly 30 years. The Republican defeat will ring some alarms for the party – and their support among Latino voters.

Women work in the plastic container assembly area inside the El Oso shoe polish factory, located in Mexico City, Mexico, in its new facilities, after officers from the Secretariat of Citizen Security and staff from the Benito Juarez mayor's office arbitrarily and violently remove their supplies, raw materials, machinery, and work tools on January 17 of this year following a coordinated operation stemming from a private dispute. On August 27, 2025.
Photo by Gerardo Vieyra/NurPhoto

50: Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum is taking a page out of US President Donald Trump’s book, implementing up to a 50% tariff on more than 1,400 products in a bid to boost domestic production.