Brazil's two largest cities, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, have revoked price hikes on public transportation. The decisions meet an important demand of protesters, who are staging the largest demonstrations in 20 years.

Sao Paulo state Governor Geraldo Alckmin said on Wednesday that he hoped the move to rescind the price hikes would create "the tranquility needed to debate issues calmly."

Brazil has been gripped by protests since last week, when people took to the streets of Sao Paulo to oppose an increase in fares for the bus and metro. Social media helped turn the protests into a nationwide movement, with more than 200,000 demonstrators turning out across Brazil on Monday.