Briefly

JAPAN

Inflation at 7-year high on trade upheavals

Japan's core consumer prices posted their biggest jump in seven years in April, official data showed on Friday, as global commodity prices soared and the yen slumped against the dollar. The core consumer price index, which excludes fresh food, jumped 2.1 percent year-on-year, according to figures released by the internal affairs ministry. It was the first time since March 2015 that the figure has breached the 2 percent set by the Bank of Japan as its long-term inflation target.

EUROPE

Three nations report first monkeypox cases

France, Belgium and Germany on Friday reported their first cases of monkeypox, joining several other European and North American nations in detecting the disease, endemic in parts of Africa. The rare disease－which is not usually fatal－often manifests itself through fever, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes, chills, exhaustion and a chickenpox-like rash on the hands and face. The virus can be transmitted through contact with skin lesions and droplets of a contaminated person, as well as through shared items such as bedding and towels.

UNITED KINGDOM

Vintage Mercedes fetches record $143m

A 1955 Mercedes-Benz, one of only two of its kind, was auctioned off earlier this month for a whopping 135 million euros ($143 million), making it the most expensive car ever sold, RM Sotheby's announced on Thursday. The Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut was sold to a private collector, the classic car auction company said in a statement, fetching almost triple the previous record price for a car, which was set in 2018 by a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO that went for over $48 million. The car is one of just two prototypes built by the Mercedes-Benz racing department and is named after its creator and chief engineer, Rudolf Uhlenhaut, according to RM Sotheby's.

Agencies Via Xinhua