Friday, July 3, 2026 — Morning Edition

Honduras's diplomatic offices across the United States, including the embassy in Washington, will close Friday, July 3 for the US Independence Day holiday and reopen Monday, July 6, though emergency consular services will remain available.

President Nasry Asfura has written to the United States seeking a managed, predictable and humane transition for Honduran families affected by the end of Temporary Protected Status, while proposing joint work on jobs, investment and shared security.

A Libre congressman says collecting the millions that large corporations owe the state electricity utility ENEE would shore up its finances and make privatization unnecessary, and he has called for the biggest delinquent accounts to be made public.

Honduras's National Statistics Institute held a community forum in the Bay Islands to unveil the 2026 Population and Housing Census, which will collect data on demographics, housing, basic services, education, employment and health to guide development planning in the island department.

A congressman has introduced a bill to convert properties held by Honduras's seized-asset office into a nationwide network of emergency shelters for people displaced by disasters, violence or other crises.

Congress suspended debate on a proposed energy modernization law after the Liberal Party and social groups demanded more time and transparency, citing concerns about possible rate increases and the future of the state electricity company ENEE.

Also reported by: HCH

Gross domestic product grew 1.2% in the first quarter of 2026 over the previous quarter — the strongest first-quarter showing in recent years and well above the 0.1% recorded in late 2025, signaling a moderate economic pickup.

Darwin Ponce, president of the advocacy group Artículo 19, argues that comparing Honduras's food-basket prices with other countries ignores local purchasing power, and that the basic basket for a five-person urban family costs about 16,000 lempiras (roughly $640), not the four-person figure some use.

Honduras's manufacturing industry grew 1.5% in the first quarter of 2026, reversing a 3.0% contraction the previous quarter, on stronger demand for food and beverages including processed coffee, fish, oils, flour and bakery products.

Analyst Luis Cruz blames Honduras's lowest investment rate in Central America on weak legal protections and investor uncertainty, arguing that a stronger legal framework and greater certainty for investors are key to attracting capital and creating jobs.

Palmerola, which runs Tegucigalpa's Toncontín airport, denied that recent aircraft incidents stem from runway damage, blaming a June 26 Cessna mishap on tire failure, amid reports that the destination of a $3.6 million repair budget approved in 2021 remains unclear.

Also reported by: Radio Cadena Voces (X)

Lawmakers unanimously approved infrastructure contracts for 18 new classroom modules and repairs to seven schools across five western departments, plus design and construction work at five hospitals nationwide, financed by international loans with a sovereign guarantee.

The National Port Authority is investing more than $20 million to expand the solid bulk terminal at Puerto Cortés, aiming to handle larger vessels, cut logistics costs and boost daily ship capacity as part of a broader port modernization program worth over $100 million.

Also reported by: Infobae – Honduras

Tegucigalpa's city government has ramped up pothole-filling and road resurfacing across the capital, including major thoroughfares and neighborhoods such as Corralitos and Luis Landa, as part of ongoing street maintenance.

Honduras's nursing association warns it will hold informational assemblies unless the Health Ministry reinstates about 100 fired nurses, pays overdue benefits and sets up a promised technical committee to address grievances.

Also reported by: HCH, Radio Cadena Voces (RCV)

COCINH-LAB Honduras says it is shutting down after the Asfura administration declined to continue the project — a priority under the Castro government — with the company saying officials' public remarks show that domestic drug production is not a current priority and that resources must go elsewhere.

The Education Ministry reported that 16.4% of Honduras's 22,581 public schools — 3,714 facilities — need immediate infrastructure repairs, most of them in rural areas and damaged by weather and decay.

Also reported by: Radio Cadena Voces (RCV)

As of 2024, 1.46 million US residents were born in Honduras, making Hondurans the eighth-largest Hispanic population in the country, ahead of the Venezuelan and Ecuadorian communities.

A 27-year-old woman in Comayagua was arrested for staging her own abduction in November 2025 and demanding $10,000 from relatives to pay off personal debts; police caught inconsistencies in her initial report.

Also reported by: Radio Cadena Voces (RCV), Infobae – Honduras

A pedestrian died after being struck by a pickup truck on Bulevar Fuerzas Armadas in Tegucigalpa; the driver stayed at the scene and traffic authorities are investigating.

A geotechnical report blames the June 23 collapse of a warehouse on Tegucigalpa's ring road — which killed three people — on several factors, including volcanic rock degradation, poor engineering decisions, water seepage and slope instability, prompting officials to tighten building codes and risk assessment.

Three men were killed in El Negrito, Yoro, early on July 2, and police are investigating possible ties to cattle-rustling complaints in the area in recent weeks.

Also reported by: Infobae – Honduras

Osman Danilo Reyes, 30, a motorcycle-taxi driver, was shot and killed on a road near the village of La Montañita in San Juan, Intibucá, as police secured the scene.