Reuters World News - Honduras, Bondi Christmas, and tensions over EU visa bans

Episode Date: December 25, 2025

Backpackers return to Bondi Beach for Christmas in the shadow of the December 14 attack. Honduras declares a presidential winner after weeks of delays and fraud claims. Plus, European leaders condemn U.S. visa bans tied to Europe's digital safety law, and the AI chip squeeze helps drive up game console prices. Listen to Morning Bid podcast ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Find the Recommended Read here. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hi, I'm Jonah Green in New York. It's Thursday, December 25th. Today, Honduras has a new president more than three weeks after the election. European leaders hit back after the U.S. targets the architects of a digital safety law with visa bans. Backpackers bring some joy to Bondi Beach in the wake of the deadly massacre. And video game consoles are getting more expensive during the AI boom. Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes, seven days a week. Gray clouds hung in the skies over Bondi Beach this morning, but it was a very different scene from the tragedy of December 14th when 15 people died in a terror attack on Hanukkah. But today, backpackers in Santa hats, red bikinis and shorts brought some festive joy at the

annual gathering of tourists who travel to the landmark to enjoy a beach Christmas. Nazi journalist Cordelia Sue spoke to us from Bondi earlier this morning. She says celebrations are muted in the aftermath of the country's deadliest mass shooting in three decades. Usually Christmas on Bondi is a very festive occasion. You will see a lot of tourists out on the beach. Typically from the UK, there are a lot of British tourists, a lot of Irish tourists, just really enjoying Christmas on the beach in the sun away from the cold that they used to. So this year, it's been raining all morning.

It's very windy. So it's quiet than usual. And it's hard to say whether that's due to what happened here recently or the weather. But I would, it's quieter. I'm not seeing as many people out. It's not as festive. People are still in Santa hats, but there's not the usual cheering. And that would you usually hear here.

There's a lot more police walking around, a lot more visible security presence with visible police cars. British tourist Mark Conroy says he's waited a lifetime to make the trip to the beach. This is the first time in my life. I won't tell you me age, but it's a long time. And it's the best Christmas we could have on a white Bondi beach on Christmas Day with my family. It's the best. I think it's tragic. And I think everybody respects.

is very sad for what happened. And I think people here are out on the beach because it's like a celebration, but everybody has got it in the memories and everybody, and I mean everyone is feeling for their family and friends who are going through the worst possible thing you could imagine. The Honduran presidential election

finally has a clear winner after weeks of delays, technical problems and allegations of fraud. Conservative National Party campaign candidate Nasri Asfura has won Honduras' presidential election by less than 1%, securing 40.3% of the vote to win. Osfura was backed by U.S. President Donald Trump and ran on a pro-business platform with a political agenda focused on jobs, education, and security.

He has also signaled he may swap Honduras' allegiance from China to Taiwan. Be sure to check out Reuters.com for the latest. Tarrantial rains have unleashed widespread flash flooding and mud flows across southern California. Authorities are warning motorists to stay off roads while urging residents in flood zones to evacuate or shelter in place. Los Angeles city officials are urging residents to heed evacuation orders issued. Homes are considered especially vulnerable to mudslides and debris flows in areas where last year's wildfires ravaged the communities of Pacific Palisades and Altadena. A chorus of diplomatic anger from France, Germany, and the UK has rung out after the U.S. imposed visa bans on five prominent politicians behind Europe's Digital Safety Act. French President Emmanuel Macron labeling the move by the Trump administration,

as coercion and intimidation. The U.S. government argues that the bans are necessary to protect tech companies from what they call attacks on free speech. The European Union says the Digital Safety Act is meant to protect citizens. Paris Bureau Chief Gabriel Stargarter says the bans mark a major shift in the relationship between the U.S. and its European allies. I think what it is is a drip, drip, drip, drip of just deteriorating ties. You know, across Europe now, politicians and policymakers have come to the realization

that the Trump administration is no longer the friend that perhaps the United States used to be and that they need to rapidly come up with ways to mitigate the risk that that poses. That can be on Russia, Ukraine, that can be on NATO, that can be on tariffs, And that can be on cultural stuff as well. And I think that's the bigger threat to Europe that, you know, this transatlantic pact of understanding between two like-minded bloc's nations, it's fraying. The US government is taking strong steps to put in measures that it sees fit. They require reactions from Europe and from European capitals. Now, the question is, does Europe, does the EU have its house in order enough?

to move in lockstep with those threats. Over a million new Epstein files may be on the way. The U.S. Justice Department has found a trove of documents potentially tied to the convicted sex offender, which they say will delay the full release for weeks while officials work to redact details. Releases so far have contained extensive redactions, angering Democrats and some Republicans,

and doing little to diffuse a skill. scandal threatening the GOP ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The Justice Department did not elaborate on when or how the additional documents were found. You might be wondering why that video game console cost so much this holiday. Well, tariffs had already been putting pressure on sticker prices. Now, the AI boom is causing demand for the memory chips used in PlayStation's, Xbox, and Nintendo switches to outpace supply. And as tech reporters here, Kachwala explains, that means the consumer pays.

So right now, the gaming industry is in a little bit of a tough situation. Memory chips specifically are extremely important, not just for games, but also artificial intelligence data centers. And because the data center boom is so recent, a lot of these chip companies really haven't had the time to pump up capacity and reduction to the level that these data centers need, that leaves these gaming companies in a bit of a backbone. Micron Technology, for example, recently decided to exit the consumer business altogether and focus fully on data centers.

That was a big hit to the gaming industry. The prices have risen significantly because these chips are in such short supply. So on the consumer side, we're seeing prices rise 50%, 60%, sometimes doubling or been tripling, and that is going to hit overall hardware makers. I'm talking to PlayStation, the Xboxes, the gaming PC makers. We already saw game consoles rise in price by hundreds of dollars, making this current generation of console, one of the only generations of console, to get more expensive as they get older. In a holiday mail truck in Ukraine, staff dressed as Christmas elves are passing out gifts. The logistics and delivery company, Nova Post, burst

onto the scene nearly 15 years ago, disrupting the state-owned postal service with its fast turnaround times. Four years after Russia invaded Ukraine, these postal workers are overcoming blackouts, missile strikes, and broken transport links to get gifts delivered. This Christmas, says reporter Alina Harmash in Kiev, Nova Post is doing even more for Ukrainians than delivering the mail. Surprisingly, it emerged through the war is much more than a place where you just get your puzzle. For example, last week in Odessa, there were several days of blackouts

and Novo Posta kept it branches walking through these blackouts and people were coming there to charge their phones and to basically enjoy light. And we also visited a branch in Chernigiv, which survived through a several-day blackout in October. And one of the managers at that branch, he said that their branch is equipped with showers and people come in to take a shower and dry their hair. And for today's recommended read, check out our story on Intel CEO Lip Bhutan

and how he charmed Trump to gain a lifeline for his company. The story caps a year of reporting from inside Intel from our tech team. And you can find it in the notes of today's episode. on any of the stories from today, check out reuters.com or the reuters app. Don't forget to follow us on your favorite podcast player. If you're listening on a smart speaker, just ask for the latest news from Reuters seven days a week. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.