Are numbers really dropping??

My husband was listening in to the mid week meeting and they were going through all the numbers of studies, baptisms etc and they all seem incredibly high. I read a lot of posts on here saying how conventions are emptier, assemblies, meetings etc. but where I am in the UK, it seems to be growing. I read the posts on here and they give me peace of mind. But when I hear the numbers read out and see conventions and assemblies full, it makes me anxious. Anyone know why this is? Are the numbers they tell us incorrect? It seemed REALLY high. Like 290k people baptised last year worldwide (can’t remember actual number but it was something like this)