UK's Prince Philip admitted to hospital over 'pre-existing condition'

04:44, December 21, 2019

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  Home for the holidays: Britain's Prince Philip leaves hospital

  BritainsPrince Philip was discharged from a London hospital Tuesday and immediately taken by helicopter to join other senior royals at Queen Elizabeth IIs rural retreat in time for a traditional family Christmas.Britains Prince Philip leaves King Edward VII Hospital in London, Tuesday Dec. 24, 2019. Prince Philip left hospital Tuesday after being treated for what Buckingham Palace called a “pre-existing condition.”The 98-year-old is expected to join the rest of Britains royal family for Christmas at Sandringham House in eastern England. (Photo: AP)His arrival is a bit of welcome good news for the queen at the end of a year that she admits has been “bumpy.” Her comments are thought to relate not just to Britains difficult path toward Brexit but also setbacks experienced by the royal family in 2019.Buckingham Palace did not reveal details about Philips medical treatment and said that he wished to thank everyone who had sent good wishes during his four-night stay at the private King Edward VII hospital in London.The palace had previously said that the 98-year-old prince was being hospitalized for planned treatment of a pre-existing condition. The fact that he did not go to the hospital by ambulance and that the queen did not change her plans to be by his side suggested it was not an emergency situation.Philip, a man of great pride, walked out of the hospital on his own Tuesday morning even though many patients of that age use wheelchairs when they are discharged. The prince left the hospital on foot and entered a vehicle unaided. He was dressed elegantly with his tie in a Windsor knot and waved to a nurse as he departed the hospital.The palace said he had been hospitalized as a "precautionary measure." Officials did not explain the nature of his treatment, which appeared to have been timed to allow him to receive the care he needed and return to the family in time for Christmas.He has suffered from heart disease and other ailmen...

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  Chief of health product maker admits to scheme

  Quanjian.pyramid.Zhou.

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  US existing-home sales slip due to low inventory

  (Photo: Xinhua)CHICAGO, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- U.S. existing-home sales fell 1.7 percent in November from October, mainly due to low inventory level, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) said on Thursday.Both the South and West areas reported sales decline in November, while the Northeast and Midwest saw growth.Total existing-home sales went down 1.7 percent from October to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.35 million in November. However, sales were up 2.7 percent from a year ago.Lawrence Yun, NARs chief economist, said the overall decline in sales for November is not a cause for worry."Sales will be choppy when inventory levels are low, but the economy is otherwise performing very well with more than 2 million job gains in the past year," Yun was quoted as saying.U.S. housing inventory at the end of November totaled 1.64 million units, down approximately 7.3 percent from October and 5.7 percent from one year ago.Unsold inventory totals have declined for five consecutive months, constraining home sales, said NAR.The median existing-home price for all housing types in October was 271,300 U.S. dollars, up 5.4 percent from November 2018 and prices rose in all regions."The new home construction seems to be coming to the market, but we are still not seeing the amount of construction needed to solve the housing shortage," said Yun.