ENERGY PRESSER - The Minister for Energy, Claude Turmes will hold a press conference on the current state of energy supplies at noon today. Currently the wholesale price of gas is cheaper than before the war in Ukraine started. Prices at the gas exchange in the Netherlands fell below 73 euros per megawatt hour yesterday, the lowest value since February 21 last year.
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS - Alain Massen, the president of the National Representation of Parents has told RTL radio that European and International schools lead to a form of ghettoization, as many students do not come into contact with Luxembourgish at all. Massen said that the ‘ordinary’ school system needs to be structured in such a way that every student can find their place in it and that all languages are put to good use. This would avoid having to build structures like European or International schools.
POPULAR NAMES - Emma remains the most popular girl’s name among residents of Luxembourg’s larger communes. In 2022, Emma ranked top of the list, followed by Mia in second place for a third year in a row. Mila rounded off the top 3, replacing Sofia in third position. There is no clear winner amongst boys, but Liam, Gabriel and Noah were all equally popular .
EU CHINA COVID - EU countries are moving towards coordinating travel measures in response to China’s COVID surge, including pre-departure testing, masks on flights and testing wastewater for possible new variants. The push for a joint response comes after several EU countries, including Spain, Italy and France introduced their own measures. EU Health commissioner Stella Kyriakides has tweeted that discussions on an integrated political crisis response will continue today. Health experts are, however, sceptical that China travel curbs will be effective.
US CONGRESS - The US House of Representatives is deadlocked over the election of a new speaker. The Republican leader Kevin McCarthy has failed to secure enough support from his own party, after 3 rounds of voting. His critics say they will not back down but McCarthy has refused to drop out of the race. The House has adjourned its proceedings until later today.
TEMPERATURES EUROPE - Unseasonably warm temperatures have broken records in eight countries across Europe for the month of January. They include Poland and the Czech Republic, which registered 19 degrees Celsius on New Year’s Day. Their average is usually below zero. The phenomenon is due to the arrival of a warm air mass on the west coast of Africa. Unseasonably warm conditions and sparse snowfall has forced some low-level ski resorts to shut in recent days. Temperatures in France at the end of the year were the warmest for 25 years, according to national forecaster Meteo France.
SKI JUMPING - Dawid Kubacki from Poland has won the qualification of the third jump at the four-hill ski jumping tournament in Innsbruck. He jumped 128 metres, 14 further than rival Halvor Egnener Granerud from Norway, who came in at 13th place.
WORLD DARTS CUP - Michael Smith is the new Darts World Champion. The English player beat Dutch player Michael van Gerwen at the legendary Ally Pally in London last night. He is now also the new leader in the PDC world ranking list and as a small bonus, earned half a million British pounds in prize money.
FOOTBALL RONALDO - Cristiano Ronaldo described himself as a “unique player” and insisted his career was not over as he arrived at his new club Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia. The Portuguese forward, 37, has signed a huge deal estimated at 200 million euros after glittering spells at Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus.
Weather
Let’s take a look at the weather today: The wind and rain will set in once again today, with strong gusts of up to 55 km/h predicted in the afternoon. Morning temperatures will start off at 4-7°C, rising to 9-11°C in the afternoon.
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