The Today Radio news team brings you the latest headlines for Thursday, 27 March.

Luxembourg 

HOUSE PRICES – Housing prices in Luxembourg, including both apartments and houses, saw an increase in the fourth quarter of 2024, marking the first rise since the end of 2022. The surge was seemingly inevitable given the sustained high demand for housing. The reduction in credit costs also played a role, with activity levels in the fourth quarter returning to pre-crisis standards for houses and even exceeding them for apartments.

MOBILITY – The new Emile Hammerel bridge in Bettembourg will officially open to road traffic on 4 April, following a year-long reconstruction project. Works had caused major disruptions on the N13 road, which sees over 10,000 vehicles daily, and affected operations at Bettembourg station – the country's second busiest railway junction.

PETITION DENIED – The Luxembourg government will not extend the 'head of family' allowance – currently granted to civil servants with children – to private sector employees, Labour Minister Georges Mischo confirmed during a Chamber debate on Wednesday. The discussion followed a public petition urging equal access to the family allowance for parents in the private sector, arguing that children should not be disadvantaged based on their parents' employment status.

CARITAS – A parliamentary hearing on the Caritas scandal has revealed stark divisions, as the ex-director's claim that the foundation could have been saved clashed with the majority parties' insistence that its governance failures were irreparable. The special parliamentary committee was established to shed light on the €60 million embezzlement that was made public in July 2024.

CCTV – Vandalism, muggings, and stolen vehicle cases are driving increased police use of national CCTV footage, with Visupol system requests climbing steadily since 2021, according to newly released government data. The data was disclosed by Minister for Home Affairs Léon Gloden in response to a parliamentary question from the Alternative Democratic Reform Party (ADR).

World

US TRADE POLICY – US President Donald Trump has imposed sweeping 25% tariffs on foreign-made cars and parts, triggering global backlash and market turmoil ahead of a broader trade offensive set for next week. Wall Street slumped ahead of Trump's Wednesday afternoon announcement, while the world's top-selling automaker Toyota plunged more than 3%.

PARIS SUMMIT – French President Emmanuel Macron warned that Russia still shows a "desire for war" despite ceasefire efforts in Ukraine, as European leaders prepare to meet in Paris this morning to discuss security guarantees for Kyiv under a potential US-brokered truce. In a sign of the tension ahead, Russia and Ukraine accused each other of derailing an initial deal that could see them halt attacks in the Black Sea and against energy infrastructure.

SOUTH KOREA – Wildfires in South Korea are now "the largest on record", having burned more forest than any previous blaze, the country's disaster chief said Thursday, as the death toll rose to 26. More than a dozen fires broke out over the weekend, scorching wide swathes of the southeast, forcing around 27,000 people to urgently evacuate, with the fire cutting off roads and downing communications lines as residents fled in panic.

SIGNALGATE – US President Donald Trump has dismissed a scandal over leaked plans for Yemen air strikes as a "witch hunt" and defended his embattled Pentagon chief amid calls by Democrats for him to quit. Trump repeated his insistence that no classified information was shared in the breach, adding that National Security Advisor Mike Waltz "took responsibility" for the error.

PRINCE HARRY – Prince Harry has quit as patron of a charity he founded in southern Africa almost 20 years ago in honour of his mother Princess Diana after a bitter boardroom battle. Harry founded Sentebale in 2006 with the Prince of Lesotho to help young people with HIV and Aids in the southern African kingdom and later Botswana. But relations have soured between the charity's trustees and board chair Sophie Chandauka, who was appointed in 2023.

Sport

FIGURE SKATING – Figure skating united on Wednesday as the World Championships in Boston mourned the victims of a January plane crash that claimed the lives of several skaters and coaches. Twenty-eight of the 67 people who perished when an American Airlines plane collided with a military helicopter in Washington DC on 30 January were members of the figure skating community.

FOOTBALL – Former Brighton and Fulham defender Liam Rosenior has so far enjoyed a stellar debut season at Ligue 1 club Strasbourg and has his sights set on Europe. With eight matches to go in Ligue 1, Strasbourg have amassed more points than in the whole of the previous season and sit seventh, four points off a Champions League spot. Victory on Friday against fifth-placed Lyon would be a huge step towards European action next season, and possibly even a first appearance in the continent's top club competition since 1980.

Arsenal's women produced a thrilling fightback from a 2-0 first leg defeat to beat Real Madrid 3-0 last night and set up a Champions League semi-final with eight-time winners Lyon. Alessia Russo scored twice for the Gunners to fire Arsenal into the last four.

BASKETBALL – LeBron James tipped in a buzzer-beating rebound with 0.1 seconds remaining as the Los Angeles Lakers halted their three-game losing streak with a 120-119 road victory over the Indiana Pacers in Indianapolis yesterday. In New York, the Los Angeles Clippers battled back from 14 points down to defeat the New York Knicks 126-113 at Madison Square Garden.

Weather

The weather forecast for today calls for sunny skies but it is a decidedly colder morning than of late, with temperatures of between just 1 and 3°C. Things will warm up in the afternoon, with an expected high of 13°C.

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