London-The battle for control of one of the UK's most prestigious golf clubs, Wentworth in Surrey, has intensified. Another Irish bidder has entered the frame and in response the current bid was upped by 10% to euro 160.6 million ($196.5 million).

LONDON-UK investment sales are set to hit a new record of euro 51.4 billion ($62.8 billion) this year--up 20% over last year. CB Richard Ellis, which made the prediction, attributes the growth in sales to strong demand from buyers and the poor performance of equity and bond markets.

LONDON-The bribery and corruption scandal embroiling Germany's real estate has deepened after one of the country's biggest banks filed a complaint with the prosecutor's office in Frankfurt. DekaBank alleges that a former managing director of its property unit may have been involved in a national corruption scandal.

LONDON-Hotels group InterContinental is to sell an additional 76 properties, mainly in the UK, worth euro 1.3 billion ($2.3 billion). It is the next stage of a strategy aimed at divesting the group of hotel ownership and it brings to euro 3.2 billion ($3.9 billion) the total value of hotels put up for sale by the company so far.

LONDON-Elliott Bernerd has confirmed that his Duelguide vehicle, which took Chelsfield private earlier this year, has received expressions of interest from possible bidders interested in buying the company. Market speculation has centred on Australian contenders Westfield and Multiplex.

LONDON-Minerva has extended the deadline for formal, non-binding bids for the company to Sept. 20. Bids of about €894 million ($1.1 billion) are expected and at least 15 possible suitors have been invited to bid.

LONDON-Two of London's most fashionable hotels, the St. Martins Lane and the Sanderson, have been put up for sale with a euro 148.6-million ($179.7-million) price tag. The hotels, owned jointly by Burford and Ian Schrager, will be marketed by Jones Lang LaSalle.

LONDON-Sales of UK shopping centers doubled in the first half of the year, compared to the same period last year. By the end of June, 48 centers had changed hands for a total of euro 3.7 billion ($4.4 billion), and yields continued to harden.