The weekend will be rain-free and warmer with highs in the mid to upper 80s Saturday and near 90 on Sunday. The clouds will gradually give way to increasing sunshine, aiding in the warm up. Even though temperatures will approach 90 on Sunday, no extreme heat is expected in the coming days. In fact, temperatures next week will be slightly …

LONDON: The number of COVID-19 infections in England jumped by 60% in the week from Aug. 30 to Sept. 5 according to official estimates, as the number of official cases rises across the UK and days before a ban on social gatherings comes into effect. Britain’s Office for National Statistics said that it estimated there were around 3,200 new cases …

STOCKHOLM/TOKYO: Microsoft will on Tuesday launch its Xbox cloud gaming service priced at $1 for new users’ first month, in a major drive to attract casual gamers with the promise of cutting ties to the living room and as competition with Sony heats up. Subscribers to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, priced at $14.99 monthly, will be able to play more …

MOSCOW: Russia’s sovereign wealth fund said on Friday that more than one billion people would receive its COVID-19 vaccine “Sputnik-V” in 2020-21, the Interfax news agency reported. The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) has already signed two deals to export the vaccine abroad and on the Brazilian state of Bahia on Friday agreed to conduct Phase III clinical trials of …

NEW YORK: Victoria Azarenka came from a set down to stun record-chasing Serena Williams on Thursday and set up a US Open final against Japan’s Naomi Osaka. Azarenka recovered from a 6-1 hammering in the first set to win the next two 6-3, 6-3 after a 116-minute battle and schedule her first Grand Slam final appearance in seven years. The …

LENS: Paris St Germain lost 1-0 at promoted RC Lens in their first Ligue 1 game of the season on Thursday following a bad mistake by goalkeeper Marcin Bulka, as the French champions suffered in the absence of several players who tested positive for Covid-19. Pole Bulka, 20, tried to play the ball out along the floor to team-mate Marci …

ly LAHORE: Due to a late decision taken by the Senate Standing Committee on Sports, a mess-up was created as the visit made by two key officials of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to Islamabad to appear before the Senate Committee to brief it over the cricket affairs went in vain. PCB chairman Ehsan Mani and chief executive Wasim Khan …

LONDON: The new Premier League season kicks off on Saturday with some fresh talent but still without fans as the world’s most popular domestic football competition continues, for the time being at least, as a made for television product. The plot is unlikely to be dramatically different from the past two seasons. After winning the title by 18 points, Liverpool …

ISLAMABAD: Confronting them with their healthy profits, the government on Friday declined any relaxation in recovery of Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) and asked the fertiliser and textile industries to start paying their Rs250 billion outstanding liabilities. Two delegations of fertiliser and textile industries had separate meetings with a government team led by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance …

KARACHI: The flour prices, after witnessing a decline of Rs2 per kg prior to arrival of the first Ukrainian ship in the last week of August, have again started crawling up as Sindh millers raised rates of various varieties by Rs1.50 per kg. Millers have fixed the flour No.2.5 at Rs57.50 per kg, followed by Rs61.50 per kg for fine …