Global trade in cocaine, methamphetamine is booming

The global trade in illicit drugs is booming, with cocaine production and seizures of methamphetamine at an all-time high, a United Nations report showed on Friday, warning of a surge in new drugs filling a gap left by the collapse in heroin supply.

Cocaine production surged to roughly 4,100 metric tons of pure product in 2024, the latest year on record, a four-fold increase within a decade, while methamphetamine seizures suggest production is growing 13% a year, the United Nations Office on...