Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Hard Numbers

Hard numbers: Myanmar’s military-backed party set to win sham election, Trump threatens to raise tariffs on South Korea, Silver prices spike, & More

Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing (R) arrives at a polling station in the Myanmar capital of Naypyitaw on Dec. 28, 2025.

Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing (R) arrives at a polling station in the Myanmar capital of Naypyitaw on Dec. 28, 2025, for the country's first general election since a 2021 coup.

Kyodo

57: The number of seats – out of 61 – that Myanmar’s military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party has won in the lower house following Sunday’s election, according to a party official. The election, the first since the army seized power in 2021, was widely viewed as a sham, with many townships refusing to vote.


$22 billion: The net outflow from African nations to China from 2020-2024, a reversal from the net inflow of $30 billion over the preceding five-year period. This turnaround reflects rising debt repayments and a sharp drop in the amount of Chinese loans to the continent.

500,000: The number of undocumented migrants who could be granted legal status in Spain, according to the country’s government. It’s a notable move for the fast-growing European economy, and one that stands in contrast to many of its neighbors, which have tightened legal immigration.

25%: The incoming US tariff rate on South Korean imports, after US President Donald Trump vowed to raise duties from 15%. Trump said lawmakers in Seoul were taking too long to enact a trade deal that the two sides had agreed on in July – the deal would have allowed preferential treatment for Korean cars in the US market.

250%: The amount that silver prices have risen over the last year, an astonishing amount that far eclipses the jump in gold prices. The cost of silver now sits around $110 per troy ounce.

More For You

​Iran player Fatemeh Pasandideh (right) reacts during the national anthem of Iran prior to the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Group A match between Iran and Philippines at Gold Coast Stadium on the Gold Coast, Sunday, March 8, 2026.

Iran player Fatemeh Pasandideh (right) reacts during the national anthem of Iran prior to the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Group A match between Iran and Philippines at Gold Coast Stadium on the Gold Coast, Sunday, March 8, 2026.

AAP
7: The number of members of the Iranian women’s soccer team who were granted asylum in Australia on Wednesday – including six players and one of the team’s support staff – after they refused to sing the national anthem during the Asian Cup soccer tournament there. However, one of the seven women withdrew her request on Wednesday and is set to [...]
​A man removes a sheet from a wall with shrapnel holes at the site of a drone attack on a birthday party, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on October 4, 2025.

A man removes a sheet from a wall with shrapnel holes at the site of a drone attack on a birthday party where an alleged gang leader was distributing gifts to children, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on October 4, 2025.

REUTERS/Egeder Pq Fildor
1,243: The number of people killed by government-ordered drone strikes in Haiti between March 1, 2025, and Jan. 21, 2026, Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday. The number of armed drone attacks has been increasing in recent months as the Haitian security forces seek to regain control of areas dominated by gangs. Some of the strikes have gone astray, [...]
​Share of Colombian voters who participated in Sunday's right-wing primary.

Share of Colombian voters who participated in Sunday's right-wing primary.

Natalie Johnson
Center-right Colombian Sen. Paloma Valencia will head into May’s presidential election with some momentum, after 83% of voters opted to vote in the right-wing primary on Sunday – which she won comfortably. Left-wing Sen. Iván Cepeda and conservative lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella will be her biggest rivals come the election.There was also a [...]
​Bangladeshi women hold placards as they take part in a rally to mark International Women's Day in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on March 8, 2021. (Photo by Mamunur Rashid/NurPhoto)

Bangladeshi women hold placards as they take part in a rally to mark International Women's Day in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on March 8, 2021. (Photo by Mamunur Rashid/NurPhoto)

(Photo by Mamunur Rashid/NurPhoto)
27.5%: The share of parliamentary seats women hold worldwide, as of Jan. 1, 2026, per a report by the Inter-Parliamentary Union. It’s a modest gain – 0.3 points – from a year prior, but marks an overall slowdown since 2017. The Americas topped the list of regions with the highest share of female parliamentarians, with women making up 35.6% of [...]