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Hard Numbers: Nigeria’s dwindling oil output, Baltics and Poland ban Russians, Puerto Rico goes dark, China’s monkeypox warning

Nigeria’s dwindling oil output, Baltics and Poland ban Russians, Puerto Rico goes dark, China’s monkeypox warning
man collects crude oil from a mini depot at an illegal oil refinery site near river Nun in Nigeria's oil state of Bayelsa.
Reuters

32: Nigeria’s oil output has hit a 32-year low due to underinvestment in oil infrastructure as well as widespread crude oil theft by gangs and terrorists. Crucially, the country has been unable to capitalize on increased crude oil prices amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.

4: Four European states – Poland and the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – closed their doors to Russian tourists on Monday due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Finland, which also borders Russia, opted out of the ban, saying it did not want to reject visas to Russians granted by other EU states under the Schengen zone agreement.

1.3 million: More than 1.3 million Puerto Ricans were without power Monday after Hurricane Fiona knocked the power grid offline. This comes almost exactly five years after Hurricane Maria landed in Puerto Rico, killing 3,000 people and destroying infrastructure, much of which has not been fully restored.

1: China’s health ministry told residents to avoid touching any foreigners after the first case of monkeypox was recorded in the southwestern city of Chongqing. This comes amid rumors that Beijing might look to ease its restrictive zero-COVID policy after the Communist Party holds its five-yearly congress next month.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with journalists to comment on new U.S. sanctions targeting two major Russia's oil producers, as well as other international issues, in Moscow, Russia, October 23, 2025.
Sputnik/Alexander Shcherbak/Pool via REUTERS

The US has paused Russian oil sanctions in a bid to stabilize energy markets rocked by the war with Iran. Administration officials stress that it’s a “tailored” measure, applying only to oil already loaded onto tankers, but it’s still a gift to Russia, which has already been clocking an extra $150 million daily in oil revenues since the war began.

A Boeing C-135 Stratotanker / Stratolifter military aircraft known as KC-135 of the United States Air Force USAF configured as Air Tanker Transport for aerial refueling, powered by 4x CFMI jet engines and tail number 63-8003. The military plane spotted flying over the Netherlands in the blue sky from Mainland USA to Tel Aviv TLV to support the Israel USA - Iran war known as Operation Epic Fury by the US Department of Defense. Venlo, the Netherlands on March 2, 2026
Photo by Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto

4: The number of crew members aboard a US refuelling plane – out of six total – who died after the aircraft crashed in neighboring Iraq on Thursday, US Central Command said this morning.