Jane ChambersBusiness reporter, Asunción, Paraguay Gabriela Cibils Gabriela Cibils wants to help Paraguay attract big tech from the US and elsewhere Gabriela Cibils is on a mission – to help turn Paraguay into the Silicon Valley of South America. When she was growing up in the landlocked country, nestled between Brazil and Argentina, she says the nation “wasn’t super tech focused”. But it was different for Ms Cibils, as her parents worked in the technology sector. And she was inspired to study in the US, where she got a degree in computing and neuroscience from the University of California, Berkeley.…

George King and Owen SennittLocal Democracy reporter PA Media The Museum of Homelessness recorded nine deaths in Norfolk in 2024, four more than recorded in the year before The number of people who have died while homeless in a county has almost doubled in a year, new data has found. Research by the Museum of Homelessness has revealed that nine people died in Norfolk last year compared with five in 2023, with the average age being 43. Nationally, the figure has reached 1,611, which includes 11 children, and represents an increase of 9% overall, while in the East of England…

The Dutch government has taken control of Nexperia, a Chinese-owned chipmaker based in the Netherlands, in a bid to safeguard the European supply of semiconductors for cars and other electronic goods and protect Europe’s economic security. The Hague said it took the decision due to “serious governance shortcomings” and to prevent the chips from becoming unavailable in an emergency. Nexperia’s owner Wingtech said on Monday that it would take actions to protect its rights and would seek government support. The development threatens to raise tensions between the European Union and China, which have increased in recent months over trade and…

Chancellor Rachel Reeves should avoid “directionless tinkering and half-baked fixes” when trying to boost the government’s tax take in next month’s Budget, a leading think tank has said. Taxes are widely expected to go up in the Budget, with pressure on the chancellor to raise money in order to meet her self-imposed rules for government finances. The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said Reeves could raise tens of billions of pounds a year more in revenue without breaking manifesto promises, but this would not be straightforward. The Treasury said the chancellor had been clear the Budget would strike a…

Average mortgage rates have risen for the first time month-on-month since February as lenders approach the winter with caution. Following a series of drops in mortgage interest rates, the picture worsened slightly for new and renewing borrowers over the last month, according to financial information service Moneyfacts. The average rate for a two, or five, year fixed rate stands at about 5%, much lower than the peak of recent years, but still a stretch for many homeowners. Analysts suggest imminent, further base rate cuts by the Bank of England appear unlikely, and uncertainty always foreshadows a Budget. Moneyfacts data shows…