Hard Numbers: Grain ship finally departs Odesa, EU cash to Ukraine, monkeypox spreads in Brazil, BoE mulls big rate hike

26,000: The first grain-filled ship to leave the Black Sea port of Odesa set sail on Monday. Carrying 26,000 metric tonnes of Ukrainian corn, the ship will first stop in Istanbul en route to Lebanon.

1 billion: The EU disbursed 500 million euros on Monday to Ukraine, and another 500 million is set to drop on Tuesday. EU Commission VP Valdis Dombrovskis said the billion euro loan is the first part of a 9 billion euros financial package to help Ukraine amid the war, and that the EU will provide support “for as long as it takes.”

1,000: Brazil’s health ministry reports the country is battling close to 1,000 cases of monkeypox, with the cities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro especially hard hit. Brazil has recorded one death from the virus; Spain has reported two.

25: While the Bank of England has raised interest rates by .25 percentage points several times since December, it is now mulling its highest benchmark rate in 25 years. The bank will announce on Thursday whether its new benchmark rate is 1.75% – a .50 percentage point hike.