Hard Numbers: Ether price surges, Tigray’s food crisis, Belgium-France border moved, space-aged wine

Hard Numbers: Ether price surges, Tigray’s food crisis, Belgium-France border moved, space-aged wine
A representation of virtual currency Ethereum are seen in front of a stock graph in this illustration.
REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

3,456: The price of one Ether, the world's second most popular cryptocurrency after Bitcoin, hit an all-time high of $3,456 on Tuesday. Ether, which has quadrupled in value so far in 2021, is gaining ground as governments around the world grapple with how to regulate digital currencies.

4.5 million: Six months after a war started in Ethiopia's Tigray region, 4.5 million people currently need food assistance. Aid groups fear tens of thousands of people have been killed since November, when clashes erupted between the Ethiopian army and Tigray nationalists.

2.29: A Belgian farmer inadvertently altered his country's border with France by moving a stone marker 2.29 meters (7.5 feet) inside French territory because it was in his tractor's path. Although the incident has not yet caused a diplomatic spat, failure to return the marker to its original location could trigger a Franco-Belgian border commission that was last convened in 1930.

1 million: A bottle of a rare vintage French wine that spent more than a year aboard the International Space Station will be auctioned off, with an asking price of $1 million. The wine was "aged" in a near zero-gravity environment as part of a study to make Earth-based plants more resilient to new stresses.

More from GZERO Media

- YouTube

If China, Japan, and South Korea formed a united front, what kind of leverage would they have in negotiating against US tariffs? I think they are heading in that trajectory. The question is, will it be enough to keep Syria stable and away from descending into civil war? Why does Trump want to take Greenland? Ian Bremmer shares his insights on global politics this week on World In :60.

President Donald Trump, seen here on the South Lawn of the White House in February, is set to unveil his "Liberation Day" tariffs.

REUTERS/Craig Hudson

T-Day has arrived. On Wednesday afternoon, Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs on US trade partners will take effect immediately after a Rose Garden announcement.

A giant screen in Beijing shows news footage about the People's Liberation Army (PLA) joint army, navy, air and rocket forces drills around Taiwan on April 1, 2025.
REUTERS/Florence Lo

Beijing conducted one of the largest and most provocative military drills ever around the island -- but why now?

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a briefing, Kyiv, Ukraine, on March 28, 2025.
Ukrinform/ABACA via Reuters Connect

Vladimir Putin insists that Volodymyr Zelensky is no longer Ukraine’s legitimate president because his government has imposed martial law and delayed elections that were due in 2024.

President Donald Trump speaks from the Oval Office flanked by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on the day he signed executive orders for reciprocal tariffs, Feb. 13, 2025.
REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Details of a group chat between senior administration officials that leaked last week – the so-called Houthi PC small group – provide allies, adversaries, and watchers with revealing insights into the administration’s foreign policy blueprint. Lindsay Newman explores the takeaways.

Proud Source became a Walmart supplier in 2021. Today, its team has grown by 50%, and it's the largest employer in Mackay, ID. Walmart supports small businesses across the country, and nearly two-thirds of Walmart's product spend is on products made, grown, or assembled in America. It’s all a part of Walmart’s $350 billion investment in US manufacturing, which helps small businesses grow and supports US jobs. Learn more about Walmart’s commitment to US manufacturing.

As Microsoft celebrates its 50th anniversary, Vice Chair and President Brad Smith sits down with company cofounder Bill Gates for a special episode of Tools and Weapons. They discuss Gates’ new memoir, "Source Code: My Beginnings," reflect on Microsoft’s impact over the past five decades, and explore why the next phase of the digital revolution is shaping up to be the most exciting yet. Subscribe and find new episodes monthly, wherever you listen to podcasts.