Briefly

UNITED STATES

Fed chief talks of strong action on prices

The Federal Reserve must continue to act "strongly" to cool demand and contain price pressures to avoid a repeat of the inflation surge the US economy suffered in the 1970s and 1980s, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said on Thursday. With soaring prices in recent months pushing annual inflation to the fastest in four decades, the central bank has raised the benchmark lending rate four times this year, with a third massive, 0.75 percentage point hike possible later this month. The comments come as the European Central Bank announced its first rate increase of 0.75 percentage point.

TURKIYE

Erdogan says senior IS militant captured

Turkish police and intelligence have captured a senior member of the Islamic State group, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced. Erdogan identified the captured operative as Bashar Hattab Ghazal Al Sumaidai and said he was known by his code name Abu Zeyd. The militant was seized in a joint operation carried out by police and the Turkish intelligence agency, which were monitoring his connections in Syria and Istanbul. They had received intelligence that he would enter Turkey illegally, Erdogan said.

Agencies - Xinhua