President Obama has met congressional leaders to try to avert a budget crisis that could tip the United States back into recession unless he can reach a deal with his Republican opponents by the end of the year. Tax rises and deep cuts in government’s spending will automatically take effect in January. The Republican speaker of the House Representative John Boehner described the initial discussions as constructive.

总统奥巴马与国会议长举行会谈，努力避免发生可能导致美国再度回到衰退的预算危机，除非他能与共和党同僚在年底之前达成协议，这个危险很有可能发生。增税和政府开支大幅削减政策将于一月份自动生效。共和党众议院代表约翰·博纳称初步谈判具有建设性。

The former mayor of Brazil’s largest city, Sao Paulo, has been found guilty of stealing millions of dollars from public funds and diverging them to offshore accounts in Jersey. Paulo Maluf, who's a member of congress, one of Brazil’s richest men, was ordered by a court in Jersey to pay back more than $10m plus interests to the Sao Paulo city authorities. The court said Mr Maluf had overcharged on construction projects. He denied the charges.

巴西最大城市圣保罗前市长承认从公共资金中盗用数百万美元，将之转到自己在泽西岛的离岸账户中。国会议员Paulo Maluf是巴西首富，泽西岛法庭命令他将1000多万美元的本金和利息交回圣保罗市政府。法庭说Maluf对建设项目多收取资金。他否认了这些指控。