The Independent is bolstering its editorial team in the US as it sets its sights on closing in on Huffpost’s audience figures in the states, a month after overtaking the Guardian in the UK.

The digital-only newsbrand has appointed a US editor and Washington DC bureau chief, with plans to expand its teams in New York and Washington.

The US has been the Independent’s biggest market for the past three years, with a 40 per cent growth in unique readers and 70 per cent rise in page impressions in the past 12 months, its owner ESI Media said.