Striking public workers. Barricaded high schools. Blocked ports. Budget paralysis. Spiraling bond rates. Fears of a far-right takeover. France suddenly finds itself engulfed by crisis — not a single spasm of unrest, but a cascade of disruption that is roiling city streets, trading floors and public offices across the country.
The causes can be traced to a common root: France’s two-decade-long struggle to fund its state, now exacerbated by high borrowing costs, surging fuel prices and political uncertainty, with jockeying underway to replace President Emmanuel Macron next spring. French public finances continue to deteriorate, fanning fears that France could be the next European country to tumble into a full-blown financial crisis. The fiscal jitters were amplified by polls showing far-right candidate Marine Le Pen would beat all rivals in presidential elections next spring.
On Tuesday, teachers and public workers rallied against proposed wage freezes. They joined thousands of students who have blockaded schools to protest underfunding. Hundreds of schools have closed, dozens have been damaged, and many people have been arrested or injured. Traders kept the yield on 10-year French bonds near 5 percent, a sign investors lack confidence in the lame-duck government.
“In France, we say ‘fin de règne,’” said Jean-Yves Camus, a political scientist at the Jean Jaurès Foundation. “The regime is at the end of its term and does not seem to have a plan for the next seven months.” Economists noted France’s anchor role in the European Union means the bloc would bail it out. “It’s a slow-motion train wreck,” said Kenneth Rogoff, a professor at Harvard.
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing