Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

News

Hard Numbers: Iraqi parliament occupied, Chinese manufacturing slows, El Salvador to buy back debt, Spain going tieless

Hard Numbers: Iraqi parliament occupied, Chinese manufacturing slows, El Salvador to buy back debt, Spain going tieless

Supporters of Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr inside the Iraqi parliament in Baghdad.

REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani
Make us preferred on Google

125: At least 125 people were injured over the weekend after supporters of Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr stormed parliament for a second time in three days to reject a pro-Iran candidate for PM. The protesters now say they'll camp out there until further notice, raising the stakes for the stalled formation of a new government.


49: China's manufacturing activity index fell unexpectedly to 49 in June (below 50 indicates contraction). Zero-COVID and weak global demand are doing a number on the Chinese economy, to the point that the ruling Communist Party has stopped talking about its growth target for the year.

1.6 billion: El Salvador wants to buy back $1.6 billion worth of its sovereign debt at much lower market prices to avoid default. Well played by President Nayib Bukele if he’s already secured the cash; otherwise, it's a recipe for accumulating even more debt.

27: In a nod to making casual Fridays an environmental policy option, Spain's PM Pedro Sánchez is ditching his necktie, and asking office workers to follow his example to save energy. They'll certainly need to do so at the Environmental Transition Ministry, which is now running the AC at a warmer-than-usual 27 C (80.6 F).

More For You

Elderly people dance at a park in Beijing, China January 16, 2024.

Elderly people dance at a park in Beijing, China January 16, 2024.

REUTERS/Tingshu Wang
Last week, the US’s fertility rate hit a record low: CDC data for 2025 showed that for every 1000 women aged 15 to 44, only 53 gave birth each year, down from 54 the previous year. The decline continues a decades-long decline. But the US is not alone. In much of the world, fertility rates are in freefall. Almost every developed country today has [...]
Afghanistan’s poppy problem
Will Fitzpatrick
As Afghan farmers struggle with high operating costs and low crop prices, more are taking a risk by illegally growing poppy to feed their families. Poppy is a key ingredient in opium – which can then be used to make heroin – and Afghanistan has long been a major producer. Before the Taliban banned cultivation in 2022, the country supplied more [...]
October 28, 2026, Anchorage, Alaska, USA: The Alaska State offical sample ballot shows where there are 2 Daniel Sullivans running for Alaska's Senate seat. One is Daniel J, Sullivan (called decoy Dan) and the other is the incumbant Daniel S. Sullivan.

October 28, 2026, Anchorage, Alaska, USA: The Alaska State offical sample ballot shows where there are 2 Daniel Sullivans running for Alaska's Senate seat. One is Daniel J, Sullivan (called decoy Dan) and the other is the incumbant Daniel S. Sullivan.

ZUMA Press Wire via Reuters Connect
Alaska Democrat’s election shenanigans cast doubt over midtermsAlaska has launched a criminal probe into Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola’s campaign after The Times revealed a plan to recruit people with the same name as her Republican opponent, incumbent Dan Sullivan, to run for office and confuse voters. The ballot for next Tuesday’s [...]
Likud Party leader and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech to supporters at the Likud campaign headquarters following the release of exit polls and initial results of the general election in Jerusalem on October 28, 2026.

Likud Party leader and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech to supporters at the Likud campaign headquarters following the release of exit polls and initial results of the general election in Jerusalem on October 28, 2026.

Anadolu via Reuters Connect
Israelis turned out in droves on Tuesday for an election billed as one of the most consequential in the country’s history – and they still don’t know who won. About 77% of Israel’s eligible voters cast ballots, the highest in more than two decades, to decide whether to give Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition another term or hand [...]