Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

News

Hard Numbers: Russian oil stops flowing, Ghana wants more IMF cash, Iran nuclear deal hopes, vinegar wars

Hard Numbers: Russian oil stops flowing, Ghana wants more IMF cash, Iran nuclear deal hopes, vinegar wars
Annie Gugliotta
Make us preferred on Google

0: That's how much Russian oil is currently flowing through the southern Druzhba pipeline, which transits Ukraine and services the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. Although those three EU member states are exempt from the bloc’s ban on Russian oil, Moscow says that EU sanctions made its payments to the Ukrainian operator bounce, so Kyiv shut off the flow on Aug. 4. We are certain there will be more to this story …


3 billion: To prop up its ailing economy, Ghana is now negotiating a $3 billion IMF loan, double the amount it asked for just a month ago. That's when mass protests over inflation rocked the West African country, one of many nations in need of a bailout to restructure piling debts.

15: After 15 months of brokering indirect talks in Qatar between Iran and the US to revive the long-moribund 2015 Iran nuclear deal, EU officials have submitted a final text for Tehran to sign. We've been down this road many times before, so don't hold your breath.

1 billion: After launching a Prosecco war against Croatia, Italy is now tussling with Slovenia over balsamic vinegar. The Slovenians want the EU to recognize any wine vinegar mixed with concentrated fruit juice as "balsamic." Ma va, say the Italians — it can only come from Modena, Emilia-Romagna, not to mention it's a market worth $1 billion.


This comes to you from the Signal newsletter team of GZERO Media. Subscribe for your free daily Signal today.

More For You

Thousands of people gather at the Palacio de Cibeles, seat of the Madrid City Council, in Madrid, Spain during demonstrations held outside city halls in autonomous communities across Spain in protest of the mass entry of migrants at the Ceuta border.

Thousands of people gather at the Palacio de Cibeles, seat of the Madrid City Council, in Madrid, Spain, on September 2, 2024, during demonstrations held outside city halls in autonomous communities across Spain in protest of the mass entry of migrants at the Ceuta border.

Aaron Heredia/NurPhoto
Immigration protests rock Spain Tens of thousands of people took to the streets across Spain on Wednesday in protest against Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s welcoming immigration policy and his handling of the immigration crisis in the North African Spanish enclave of Ceuta. In July, more than 70,000 people crossed into Ceuta from Morocco in the [...]
America’s expanding proletariat
Will Fitzpatrick
There is no official definition of “working class” – an economist might point to a certain income bracket or education level, while a Marxist might say it includes anyone who has to sell their labor to survive. But in the US now, the label seems to extend well beyond the traditional industrial proletariat – according to the poll, nearly half of [...]
A police officer in protective clothing walks next to an explosive-disarming robot (EOD) at Leipzig/Halle Airport.

A police officer in protective clothing walks next to an explosive-disarming robot (EOD) at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Schkeuditz, Germany, August 5, 2026

REUTERS/Axel Schmidt
Germany and EU to hit back at Russia over drone plot The German government has formally accused Russia of orchestrating a failed drone attack at Leipzig airport last month. The drone, which approached a cargo plane that was taking weapons to Ukraine, failed to explode as planned. In response, Berlin will shrink Russia’s diplomatic presence in [...]
China’s solar eclipse of the US
Will Fitzpatrick
China now produces more power via solar than coal for the first time ever, with rays of the sun accounting for more than 30% of the country’s total installed power generation, according to Chinese state TV. China, which remains the world’s leading overall greenhouse gas emitter, has leaned heavily into renewable energy installation and generation [...]