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Hard Numbers: Yao Ming isn’t Wining in China

16: Of the first 25 companies to list on Star Market, China's new stock exchange for tech firms, 16 of them more than doubled their share prices on the first day of official trading in Shanghai this week. The new exchange may be a boon for Chinese startups struggling to tap traditional sources of investment amid rising US-China tech tensions.

$4.76: Credit reporting agency Equifax agreed to pay up to $700 million in fines as part of a settlement with US regulators over a 2017 data breach that exposed the social security numbers and other personal details of 147 million Americans. That's an average of $4.76 per victim.

4.1: The International Monetary Fund cut its forecast for economic growth in the world's emerging markets this year to 4.1 percent – the weakest rate in a decade. Iran, Russia, and South Africa were among the global political hotspots expected to suffer from shrinking economies this year.

93: California wine sold in China is now being taxed at a rate of 93 percent after the latest round of tit-for-tat US-China tariffs. Among those caught up in the fallout: Chinese NBA legend Yao Ming. His Napa Valley vineyard's foreign exports have fallen by half this year.

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A family votes during the second round of Hungary's general election in Budapest, April 23, 2006. Hungarians went to the polls on Sunday with the Socialist-led government of Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany looking set to make history by becoming the first to retain power since the return of democracy in 1990.

A family votes during the second round of Hungary's general election in Budapest, April 23, 2006. Hungarians went to the polls on Sunday with the Socialist-led government of Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany looking set to make history by becoming the first to retain power since the return of democracy in 1990.

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With the year's end fast approaching, it's time to look ahead to the elections that could reshuffle global power dynamics in 2026. Here are a few you should keep an eye on.Hungary’s parliamentary electionsAfter consolidating power and chipping away at democratic freedoms, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán faces his most credible challenger in [...]
Slovenia's Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Secretary General of the Council of Europe Alain Berset applaud during a Council of Europe diplomatic conference in The Hague, Netherlands, December 16, 2025.

Slovenia's Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Secretary General of the Council of Europe Alain Berset applaud during a Council of Europe diplomatic conference in The Hague, Netherlands, December 16, 2025.

REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
Ukraine peace talks up their paceUkraine peace talks are showing new signs of progress. US and European negotiators emerged from meetings in Berlin yesterday agreeing to provide so-called Article 5-like security guarantees and reportedly saying “90% of the issues between Ukraine and Russia” had been resolved. However, the promise seems vague and [...]
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., USA, on Dec. 5, 2025.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney draws his country’s name at the FIFA World Cup draw at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., USA, on Dec. 5, 2025.

ddp/Marc Schüler via Reuters Connect
158: Canada has been a self-governing nation for 158 years, and has been fully independent of the UK Parliament since 1982. But Prime Minister Mark Carney has been sprinkling British English spellings – think words like “globalisation” or “colour” – into some of his communiqués, rather than Canadian English. Some linguists are upset at his [...]
​Chief Superintendent of the police force's National Security Department Steve Li Kwai-wah speaks at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building after the verdict in the national security collusion trial of pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai, in Hong Kong, China, on December 15, 2025.

Chief Superintendent of the police force's National Security Department Steve Li Kwai-wah speaks at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building after the verdict in the national security collusion trial of Jimmy Lai, founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, in Hong Kong, China, on December 15, 2025.

REUTERS/Lam Yik
156: After a 156-day trial, Hong Kong’s High Court found media tycoon Jimmy Lai guilty on national security charges on Monday. Lai, who advocated for democracy in the semi-autonomous Chinese city before the 2019 crackdown, now faces life imprisonment. The decision is another blow for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. [...]