104 million: Authorities in Liberia are investigating the disappearance of newly-printed bank notes worth 16 billion Liberian dollars ($104 million) intended for the central bank. Officials say the central bank ordered the bank notes from overseas printers. The money, packaged in canvas bags and 20-foot-high sealed containers, cleared Liberian customs between November and August but never made it to central bank headquarters in Monrovia. This possible theft represents 5 percent of Libya’s GDP.
80: The sale of oil accounts for nearly 80 percent of Iran’s tax revenue, according to the IMF. There is no simpler explanation of Iran’s vulnerability to President Trump’s reimposition of sanctions on its oil exports, which go into effect in November.
29: An aging population has increased pressure on Japan’s government to welcome more immigrants. Aides to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe say they’re preparing legislation that would admit more foreign workers who can demonstrate needed skills and speak basic Japanese. The number of foreign residents reached 2.64 million in June, more than 2 percent of Japan’s population. The total number of foreign residents is up 29 percent over the past five years.
100 million: In 1990, 12.5 million children around the world died before reaching the age of five. In 2017, that figure was just 5.4 million. Extrapolated over 28 years, this means that international and local efforts to improve the health of children have saved the lives of 100 million children.
