133: US special operations forces have carried out missions in 133 countries so far this year. America’s shadow wars continue to expand with little transparency or oversight from elected officials.
75: In the past two years, China has lent $1.4 billion to the strategically located East African nation of Djibouti. That sum is equivalent to 75 percent of the country’s GDP.
4.3: The Iranian economy is expected to grow 1.8 percent this year, down from a projected 4.3 percent before President Trump’s decision to exit the nuclear deal, according to BMI research. Next year it’s forecast to contract by 4.3 percent.
3: Venezuela’s government is giving the country’s embattled police officers a 10 million-bolivar raise. The problem: at the going exchange rate, that amounts to just $3.
1.5: Football fans spent $1.5 billion in Russia during the recent World Cup. One Russian bank processed bank cards from 194 different countries, including a Chinese card used to make purchases in 11 different Russian cities.
