Desperate to attract Christmas shoppers, most high street shops in the UK appear to have already introduced sales.

The average discount hovers around 46%.

Berlin’s historic Tempelhof airport is destined to become a vast library, a hug of historic learning.

It was one of the first airports in Europe, and was catapulted to fame when it was used by the allies to break the 1948 Soviet blockage of West Berlin.

British Airways is the first European airline to let customers use mobile phones and other gadgets throughout a flight.

Until now, passengers were allowed to use devices, such as mobile phones, iPods and e-readers, only when the aircraft entered its cruise phase, usually about 10,000ft.

The widespread search for the two missing Olhão fishermen has been suspended after 11 days. The decision was taken at noon today but normal sea and land patrols will of course be on the lookout for their bodies and traces of the missing boat, 'Rainha da Brisa.'
 
The two fishermen, 37 and 58, were last sighted near Isla Deserta where the maritime authority has been concentrating  searches in the last four days, with the help of a team form the Hydrographic Institute which has been surveying the seabed with sonar.

It is not the job of the Portuguese Institute of Ocean and Atmosphere (IPMA) to bring cheer by disguising its firm predictions that this Christmas is set to be a wash out.

Christmas Eve will be a day of torrential rain across the country which in this instance includes the Algarve and the Alentejo regions which often avoid these generalised warnings.

It has been confirmed by emergency services that yesterday’s helicopter crash in the Monchique hills caused the death of one man and left two injured.

The electricity supply to a large area of Monchique has been cut off as the helicopter severed power lines.

As the UK economy perks up, shoppers are increasingly likely to purchase goods by using credit cards.

The extent of British reliance on credit cards is substantial. Figures released this week indicate that mortgages, personal and business lending stacks up to more than £1 trillion.

The North-South divide in the UK property market is now at its widest point and is continuing to grow.

The average price for a house in London is £437,000, but this is almost three times more than a comparable one in the North East which is the least expensive area in mainland Britain.