Finnish-Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard, on trial in Toronto for alleged serial rapes, categorically denied any sexual misconduct as he wrapped up several days...

Former President Donald Trump will formally file for the New Hampshire presidential primary Monday ahead of a rally in Derry

A federal judge in Virginia has ruled that a law banning licensed federal firearms dealers from selling handguns to young adults under 21 violates the Second Amendment and is unconstitutional

Florida rejected nearly 35% of social studies textbooks submitted by publishers for approval, including those that referenced social justice and "other information that was not aligned with Florida Law," the state's Department of Education announced Tuesday.

Saudi Arabia is cutting output by one million barrels a day, and Opec+ is keeping past cuts in place

Manchester United and Chelsea’s dreadful starts to the Premier League season continued as they dropped points again this weekend. United were well beaten 3-1 by Brighton on Saturday to leave them 13th in the table while Chelsea, held by Bournemouth on Sunday, are one place worse off – and only one ahead of their winless opponents. Here, the PA news agency looks at the two clubs’ records in their first five games. Points United have six points from their first five games this season and Chelsea just five, in both cases matching their second-worst record in the Premier League era. United had only five points at this stage in 2014-15 and six in 2004-05, eventually finishing those seasons in fourth and third place respectively. They had seven in both 2013-14 and 2020-21. Chelsea’s five points matches their total at this stage from all the way back in 1993-94, which was in keeping with the club’s record in the early days of the Premier League – they had six in both 1992-93 and 1995-96 as well as 2000-01. Since their initial big-money takeover by Roman Abramovich in 2003, the only comparable season is 2015-16 when they followed up their title win the previous season with just four points from their first five games. Jose Mourinho was sacked as manager that December as the Blues eventually finished 10th. Even last season under Thomas Tuchel, on their way to a 12th-placed finish with a revolving door of managers, Chelsea had seven points at this stage. Wins and losses United have lost three of their first five games for the first time in the Premier League era, with the Brighton result following defeats against Tottenham and Arsenal. Erik ten Hag’s side lost two of their first five last season, for the seventh time in the Premier League, but have now gone one worse. They have at least won the other two, beating Wolves 1-0 and Nottingham Forest 3-2, to avoid matching the 2004-05 and 2014-15 seasons when they won only one of their first five. Chelsea have only one win, against Luton, the sixth time in the Premier League and first since 2015-16 that they have won only one of their first five. Mauricio Pochettino’s men have two defeats, the same as last season and one fewer than their nightmare start in 2015-16. Goals Chelsea’s five goals scored are their fewest in the first five Premier League games since 1995-96, matching that campaign and 1993-94 for their lowest total. Raheem Sterling’s brace against Luton makes him their only player with more than one to his name. United have scored six – only five times have they scored fewer at this stage, including five goals last season and a record low three in 2007-08 – but their bigger problem may be at the other end. The 10 goals they have conceded, three each to Arsenal and Brighton and two each to Spurs and Forest, is their second-highest total after five games. The only worse start defensively came in 2020-21, when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side scored nine in their first five but conceded 12 to leave them with seven points. That included losing 3-1 to Crystal Palace and 6-1 to Tottenham. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live England offer discarded opener Jason Roy chance to be World Cup injury reserve Martin Odegaard believes competition for places is healthy for Arsenal Lewis Ludlam urges booing fans to keep the faith after England’s win over Japan

Japan decided to restore South Korea to its list of preferred trading partners, adding to signs of improving

The price of bitcoin has experienced the strongest first half of a year since 2019, nearly doubling in value since the start of 2023. The world’s leading cryptocurrency reached above $31,000 this week, up from $16,000 in January, pushing its market cap above $600 million for the first time in more than a year. Some crypto analysts suggest the approaching ‘halving’ event, which will see bitcoin mining rewards drop by 50 per cent, could be one factor behind the cryptocurrency’s positive price trend. Bitcoin’s halving takes place roughly every four years, with the crypto’s price cycles viewed by many traders and investors as being intrinsically link to the event. Sometimes referred to as “the halvening”, the seismic event is built-in to bitcoin’s technological foundations, and is aimed at making the digital currency anti-inflationary by reducing its supply. “The months prior to the halving have historically seen the start of a bullish trend for the market, hence the market participants are carefully looking at the second half of 2023,” Matteo Greco, a research analyst at the fintech investment firm Fineqia International, told The Independent. “Riot Platforms, an industry leader in bitcoin mining and data centre hosting, announced a $162 million investment to purchase 33,280 miners, aiming to nearly double its computational power in anticipation of the next halving.” Mr Greco pointed to the cryptocurrency litecoin, once referred to as the silver to bitcoin’s gold, which typically experiences its halving event a few months before its more famous rival. In the months leading up to Litecoin’s halvings in 2015 and 2019 its price saw massive gains, which were then replicated by bitcoin. Litecoin’s next halving is currently scheduled for 3 August 2023 and it is once again experiencing a significant price increase, outperforming broader market trends. “Litecoin often served as a sentiment metric on the bitcoin halving,” Mr Greco said. “The big increase in price, while most of the altcoins keep lagging, suggests bullish sentiment is increasing ahead of the next BTC halving.” Bitcoin’s halving is currently scheduled for 26 April, 2024, with pseudonymous crypto trader PlanB noting another historic price trend that could signal more gains over the coming months. “Buy bitcoin six months before a halving and sell 18 months after a halving has historically beaten ‘buy and hold’ [trading strategy],” he tweeted on Monday. “The next halving is in April 2024... Will this strategy work again?” Read More How bad is bitcoin for the environment really? Crypto experts discuss bitcoin price predictions What is Solana? The crypto rising 200-times faster than bitcoin Could Norwegian fjords and waterfalls stop bitcoin from destroying the planet?

Elder Scrolls Online players can grab themselves some free in-game items and cosmetics as part of Xbox's Game Pass Ultimate offerings. Here's what you need to know.

It’s time for residents along the southeastern U.S. coastline to get plans in place as the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season gets underway on Thursday

Novak Djokovic contests his 100th Wimbledon match on Sunday as he continues his push for a record-equalling eighth title while Iga Swiatek aims to make...

Carlos Sainz has lost his personal trainer to Max Verstappen after eight years of working together. The Ferrari driver has worked with Rupert Manwaring since making his F1 debut in 2015, when he drove for Toro Rosso alongside Verstappen. While Verstappen was quickly promoted to Red Bull and has won three world titles, Sainz joined Renault, McLaren and now Ferrari but maintained his partnership with Manwaring. However, Verstappen has poached Manwaring after his own personal trainer Bradley Scanes opted for pastures new, with the intention of spending more time at home. Verstappen’s father, Jos, worked with Manwaring’s father during his own F1 career. Manwaring works for the Hintsa Performance company, launched by Dr Aki Hintsa – who worked with Lewis Hamilton and Mika Hakkinen before he passed away in 2016. Sainz, meanwhile, was a frustrated figure by the end of the season-finale in Abu Dhabi on Sunday. The Spaniard endured a fortnight to forget, demoted 10 places in Las Vegas after his car was damaged due to a loose manhole cover, before qualifying only 16th on the grid for the final race of the season. "Today, the last two weekends, this last weekend in general, haven’t gone like I expected or like we wanted to finish the year," he said. "Honestly, [I’m] very disappointed and obviously not happy. "Given how close it was in the end with the constructors’ championship, we will have to sit down and analyse what we could have done better today and what was going on. “Clearly the pace this weekend and the overall feeling with the car and everything, the end wasn’t good." The 2024 F1 season starts on March 2 with a Saturday night opening race – the Bahrain Grand Prix. Read More Lewis Hamilton: ‘I had asked Mercedes for changes and they weren’t done’ Mercedes team member miraculously finds wedding ring in Abu Dhabi marina Michael Masi could return to F1 despite 2021 Abu Dhabi finale ‘Sexism, please! Do they have anything else?’ FIA boss denies misogyny accusations F1 fans spark chaos and launch bottles of prosecco in Abu Dhabi brawl IndyCar champion admits breaching McLaren contract in £18m lawsuit over F1 seat