Summer came early to Middlesbrough yesterday, as temperatures shot up to 22°C (71°F), a record for March. But local NFU agent Jim Wilkes says it could be bad news for farmers. " The crops will think it's summer," he told our reporter," and start sprouting four weeks before time. 2. The death toll of the Burnside train crash rose to four yesterday when John Phillips, 32, of Petersville died in Wallsend Hospital. Another six people are still on the danger list. Mr Phillips, an electrical engineer leaves a wife and two children. 3. China and the United States reached an agreement on the protection of intellectual property rights yesterday, after strenuous marathon talks. The agreement is good news for all parties concerned. The Chinese Foreign Trade Minister described the agreement as a "turning point" in Sino-US trade relations that "promises further progress" in the future. The agreement will not only favourably impact trade relations between China and the United States , it may favourably influence the overall relations between the two countries.