Investors own more than 131,000 homes in the Las Vegas Valley now. Las Vegas Review-journal | Tribune News Service | Getty Images Sales of previously owned homes rose 4.8% in November compared with October, according to the National Association of Realtors. That put them at a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of 4.15 million units. Sales…

A ticket inspector’s bilingual greeting to a Flemish train passenger has created a political war of words – and an official complaint – in language-divided Belgium. The country’s language watchdog is investigating after a Dutch-speaking commuter protested a conductor’s use of “bonjour” – French for “good morning” – to welcome him onboard during a rush-hour…

Notch up another win for artificial intelligence. Researchers have used the technology to predict the notes that waft off whisky and determine whether a dram was made in the US or Scotland. The work is a step towards automated systems that can predict the complex aroma of whisky from its molecular makeup. Expert panels usually…

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has increased his stake in Manchester United after injecting a further £79.3m ($100m) promised when he bought his minority stake last year. The British billionaire now owns 28.94% of the club, up from 27.7%. The latest investment is set to help fund improvements off the pitch rather than help bolster Ruben Amorim’s…

There was no doubt in the City that the Bank of England would hold interest rates at 4.75%. An increase in annual inflation last month and a sharp rise in wages in the autumn meant its monetary policy committee (MPC) was widely expected to hold fire on a third rate cut this year. What many…

Enormous budget overruns on the HS2 high-speed railway have been blamed by its new chief executive on a “rush to start”, as the Department for Transport admitted it did not know how much it would cost. Mark Wild, the chief executive of HS2 Ltd, told MPs a “fundamental reset” was needed but a new plan…

A sign hangs on the front of an Olive Garden restaurant on June 22, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. Scott Olsen | Getty Images Darden Restaurants on Thursday reported quarterly earnings and revenue that met analysts’ expectations and better-than-expected same-store sales growth at Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse. Shares of the company rose 8% in premarket trading. Here’s…

Bank of England interest rate decision Newsflash: The Bank of England has left UK interest rates on hold today at 4.75%. The BoE’s monetary policy committee voted to maintain Bank Rate at its current level, very much as City economists had expected. But three policymakers wanted to cut rates to 4.5%, but were outvoted by…

Britain’s data protection regulator has labelled Google as “irresponsible” for allowing advertisers to track customers’ digital “fingerprints”, amid fears even privacy-conscious users will find the online monitoring technique difficult to block. The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has warned the practice will undermine consumers’ control and choice over how their data is collected and used,…

A Spanish state-owned shipbuilder will buy Belfast-based Harland & Wolff in a rescue deal that will secure all four of its shipyards and save about 1,000 jobs. Navantia is to acquire H&W’s Belfast shipyard where the Titanic was built, as well as the Arnish and Methil yards in Scotland, and the Appledore site in Devon,…