The National Times - News around the clock from Sydney, Australia and around the world

In Bilyana Nikolova's grocery store in Chuprene, a village in northwestern Bulgaria, prices are now displayed in levs and euros on hundreds of food products and other items.

England managing director Rob Key pledged Tuesday to investigate whether players' drinking on a mid-Ashes beach break went too far, after reports said it had been like a "stag-do."

The US economy is expected to post another solid economic growth reading Tuesday, but the much-delayed figures likely will not settle debate on the labor market, AI and other variables.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder got back to winning ways with a 119-103 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday.

US tech giant Amazon said it has blocked over 1,800 North Koreans from joining the company, as Pyongyang sends large numbers of IT workers overseas to earn and launder funds.

President Donald Trump on Monday reiterated that the United States needed Greenland for "national security" after his appointment of a special envoy to the Danish Arctic island triggered a new spat with Copenhagen.

Brock Purdy threw five touchdowns as the San Francisco 49ers all but ended the Indianapolis Colts' hopes of reaching the postseason with a 48-27 victory on Monday.

Australia skipper Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon were on Tuesday ruled out of the final two Ashes Tests against England with the veteran spinner facing surgery and an extended period on the sidelines.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his daughter opened a lavish new mountain resort complete with "cosy" leisure spaces, barbecue restaurants and hot tubs, state media said Tuesday.

Equities extended a global rally Tuesday, while gold and silver hit fresh records as optimism for more US interest rate cuts and an easing of AI fears helped investors prepare for the festive break on a positive note.

Australia's most populous state was set Tuesday to approve sweeping laws cracking down on guns and giving authorities the power to ban protests after the nation's deadliest mass shooting in decades.

When her children, trembling with fear, ask where the family can go to escape Israel's continued bombardment in southern Gaza's Khan Yunis area, Umm Ahmed has no answer.

Grieving mother Lee Hyo-eun returns every weekend to the airport where her daughter and 178 others died last year, desperate for the truth about South Korea's deadliest airline disaster.

Myanmar's military has ruled the country for most of its post-independence history, presenting itself as the only force capable of guarding the fractious Southeast Asian nation from rupture and ruin.

Myanmar's military-run elections are being pilloried abroad and shunned at home, but neighbouring China has emerged as an enthusiastic backer of the pariah poll.

Myanmar's junta is set to preside over voting starting Sunday, touting heavily restricted polls as a return to democracy five years after it ousted the last elected government, triggering civil war.

A self-described foodie, social butterfly and New Yorker for 20 years, Lina Axmacher has long loved exploring the city's famed restaurant culture.

In gang-plagued Ecuador, being sent to prison is increasingly a death sentence, whatever the crime.

Australian skipper Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon were Tuesday ruled out of the fourth Ashes Test against England with the veteran spinner facing surgery and an extended period on the sidelines.

US singer-songwriter Barry Manilow announced Monday he has been diagnosed with lung cancer, with plans to surgically treat the disease.

Vince Zampella, the acclaimed co-creator of the video gaming juggernaut "Call of Duty," has died in a car crash, gaming giant Electronic Arts confirmed on Monday.

US President Donald Trump said Monday it would be "smart" for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to step down, as US naval forces pressed a blockade on the South American country's oil wealth.

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver DJ Metcalf was handed a two-game suspension by the NFL on Monday following an incident in which he appeared to strike a Detroit Lions fan.

Premier League pair Mohamed Salah and Lyle Foster were match-winners as Egypt and South Africa began their Africa Cup of Nations Group B campaigns with victories in Morocco on Monday.

Napoli won the Italian Super Cup on Monday as David Neres scored twice to secure the reigning Serie A champions a 2-0 win over Bologna in the final in Jeddah.

Mohamed Salah scored in added time to snatch a 2-1 victory for record seven-time champions Egypt over lowly ranked Zimbabwe in an Africa Cup of Nations Group B thriller in Agadir on Monday.

Fulham climbed away from the Premier League relegation zone and left Nottingham Forest mired in the fight for survival after Raul Jimenez's penalty sealed a 1-0 win on Monday.

The Kansas City Chiefs will leave Missouri to play in a new stadium being built in neighboring Kansas after state lawmakers approved funding for the project on Monday.

Liverpool striker Alexander Isak faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines after the Premier League champions revealed he had surgery on an ankle injury that includes a fibula fracture on Monday.

Liverpool striker Alexander Isak faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines after the Premier League champions revealed he had surgery on an ankle injury that includes a fibula fracture on Monday.

Wall Street stocks pushed higher Monday to begin a holiday-shortened trading week, while oil prices rallied amid worsening tensions between the United States and Venezuela.

The Syrian government and Kurdish-led forces on Monday ordered their fighters to cease fire following deadly clashes that came as Turkey's top diplomat urged the Kurds to integrate into the Syrian army.

As US forces deployed in the Caribbean have zoned in on tankers transporting sanctioned Venezuelan oil, questions have deepened about the real motivation for Donald Trump's pressure campaign on Caracas.

The US Interior Department on Monday said it had paused all leases for offshore wind projects over unspecified national security risks, casting new doubt over the future of an industry detested by President Donald Trump.

Prominent figures on Brazil's right wing are calling for a boycott of Havaianas, the iconic Brazilian flip-flop sandals, over an ad seen as taking sides ahead of next year's presidential elections.

Nicki Minaj long reigned as pop's unruliest shape-shifter -- a hyper-sexual, neon-bright provocateur whose latex-clad persona, explicit lyrics and affinity with outsiders made her a global icon.

Burnley striker Lyle Foster scored on 79 minutes as South Africa edged Angola 2-1 in Marrakesh on Monday to win their opening match of an Africa Cup of Nations campaign for the first time in 21 years.

Russia on Monday expressed "full support" for Venezuela as the South American country confronts a blockade of sanctioned oil tankers by US forces deployed in the Caribbean.

Music streaming service Spotify said Monday it had disabled accounts from a piracy activist hacker group that claimed to have "backed up" millions of Spotify's music files and metadata.