Wellington - New Zealand's inflation rate, boosted by soaring petrol prices, hit an 18-year high of 5.1 per cent in the 12 months ending September 30, official figures revealed Tuesday.

The consumers price index rose 1.5 per cent in the September quarter, Statistics New Zealand said.

The figures came as no surprise to analysts, who said that the inflation rate was likely to have peaked with consumer prices for fuel and food already beginning to ease.

Washington - International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn has reportedly apologized to staff over an improper affair with a married subordinate.

Meanwhile, the IMF on Monday said an inquiry into whether he abused his position will be completed by the end of the month.

Strauss-Kahn met Friday with the IMF's executive board, which has the power to dismiss him, and has been "fully supportive" of the investigation, according to a statement from Shakour Shaalan, who leads the 24-member board.

Los Angeles - Richard Blackwell, the former actor and model who became the scourge of the fashion world with his annual list of "worst dressed" celebrities, has died in hospital at the age of 86, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday.

His withering evaluations of the fashion sense of movie stars, music icons and European royalty helped turn him into a household name from the 1960s through the '80s.

Some of his earliest barbs targeted style icons like Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren and Elizabeth Taylor, whose "plump" figures and revealing clothes reminded him of "the rebirth of the zeppelin," he wrote in 1963.

London - Tottenham centre-back Jonathan Woodgate insisted Monday that manager Juande Ramos still has the full backing of the team despite their dreadful start to the season.

San Francisco - Google CEO Eric Schmidt is to endorse Barack Obama and start campaigning for him, he told the Wall Street Journal Monday.