The Week in Numbers: volcano bonds, oil reserves

From bitcoin bonds powered by a volcano, to a desperate bid for cheaper oil, this is the Week in Numbers.

50 million barrels of oil will soon be released from U.S. reserves as part of a bid by Washington to tame rising prices for crude.

India, Japan and others will make their own releases too, but it's not quite clear whether China will play along. The move is seen as a challenge to OPEC, but the oil producers' group says it won't be pressed into ramping up output.

$1 billion is expected value of El Salvador's first bitcoin-backed 'volcano bond', with more to follow. The debt will fund construction of a 'Bitcoin City' where geothermal energy will power cryptocurrency mining.

El Salvador president and crypto enthusiast Nayib Bukele launched the plan:

"The only tax you're going to have in Bitcoin City is the value-added tax, which is a normal value-added tax, 10%, which you will pay if you buy a coke."

45% is the tumble for Turkey's lira currency versus the dollar so far this year. That as President Tayyip Erdogan insists on rate cuts even as inflation soars. He says that will boost investment without fuelling runaway prices. Most economists beg to differ.

$17 billion is the value of a huge new chip plant set to be built by Samsung. This week it chose the Texas town of Taylor to host the plant, beating sites in Arizona and New York.

And 199,000 was the number of initial jobless claims in the U.S. - the lowest figure since November 1969. For many companies now the big challenge is finding the right people to fill gaps.