Briefly

BRAZIL

Lula leads polls in presidential race

Brazil's former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has maintained his lead in the polls ahead of the October general elections. Lula, who represents the Workers' Party, holds 42.3 percent of voter support, while President Jair Bolsonaro of the conservative Liberal Party has 34.1 percent, according to the latest poll released on Tuesday by the MDA Survey Institute and commissioned by the National Confederation of Transport. Brazilians will go to the polls on Oct 2 to elect a new president, vice-president, governors, deputies and senators.

EUROPE

Eurozone inflation hits fresh record at 9.1%

The eurozone inflation rate hit a fresh record of 9.1 percent in August, the European Union statistics agency said on Wednesday, increasing pressure on the European Central Bank to hike interest rates. Driven by soaring fuel prices caused by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the yearly inflation rate in the 19-country single currency area is up from 8.9 percent in July and at its highest since records began in 1997. Energy prices surged 38.3 percent, while food prices rose 10.6 percent.

ETHIOPIA

Airstrike hits capital of Tigray region

The capital of the northern Ethiopian region of Tigray was hit by an airstrike around midnight on Tuesday, Tigray militants and hospital officials said, the latest such attack reported in just a few days. The bombings came after a resumption of fighting on the ground between government forces and the Tigray People's Liberation Front last week. The renewed clashes have shattered a five-month-old truce and cast a pall over efforts to try to end the nearly two-year conflict in the north of Africa's second most populous country.

Xinhua - Agencies