Brazilian presidential candidate Lula announces plans for salary increases

SAO PAULO -- Brazil's former President and current presidential candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Saturday that if he is elected, his government will raise salaries above the rate of inflation and will strive to meet workers' demands.

"People are going to have jobs with better pay again. The minimum wage will increase above inflation every year. This is something we are going to do," Lula said at an event in Sao Paulo, the largest city in the country.

Lula, who served as president from 2003 to 2010, also said that if elected, he will adjust the income tax table for salaried workers as one of his first acts.

Lula said that if he wins his third presidential election, Brazil will once again have a "high and active" foreign policy, with a focus on relations with South America and Africa.