Brazil's Lula, 80, woos voters with costly state handouts before Sunday's neck-and-neck presidential runoff against Flávio Bolsonaro

Days before polling, a 15% Bolsa Família welfare increase took effect, putting more money in the hands of nearly 50 million Brazilians. The remaining months of the year will cost taxpayers 5.8 billion reais ($1.2 billion). Ten days before the vote, Congress passed legislation cutting the working week from six days to five with no reduction in pay. A Datafolha poll shows President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in a neck-and-neck race with Flávio Bolsonaro.

Business leaders warn the shorter working week will push up labour costs and stoke inflation.

Brazil's electoral court is handling a record 804 legal filings, compared with 325 in 2022.

A Bolsonaro victory could draw Brazil's rare-earth reserves closer into Washington's orbit.