Xi vs Biden, petrol prices in Lebanon, and Nigerian bank workers

We round up the numbers from the week’s top economic stories to keep you up to date. 

Another week has passed and Friday has arrived. And no one can say this was a slow news week. While millions are enjoying post-pandemic life in restaurants and bars and workout classes, the deadly Delta variant of the coronavirus now spreading in some parts of the globe is threatening to bring back restrictions, as concerns rise over skyrocketing infections from South Africa and Russia to France and Bangladesh. Meanwhile, people in countries with higher vaccination rates are hitting the road. Petrol prices in the United States are at a seven-year high while in Lebanon people wait in line for hours to fill up their tanks. To make matters worse, the country’s energy minister lifted petrol subsidies, sending prices up by 35 percent this week.