A politically shaken France has been downgraded by Moody's Investors Service from “Aa2” to “Aa3” and the country's long-term outlook went from “stable” to “negative” amid the ongoing “fragmentation” following the appointment of Prime Minister François Bayrou.
Add your comment!French Prime Minister Michel Barnier has been forced to resign after losing a vote of no confidence Wednesday prompted by budget disputes. However, he will likely stay as a caretaker PM until President Emmanuel Macron finds a replacement. Barnier's appointment took Macron nearly two months after July’s parliamentary election. The National Assembly approved the motion by 331 votes, far exceeding the minimum 288 needed. The political standoff has unsettled financial markets, with borrowing costs rising sharply amid fears of prolonged instability.
France's Parliament was unusually united this week in rejecting the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the European Union (EU) and the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), thus yielding to protests from local farmers who fear unfair competition. The Senate gave its thumbs down Thursday, just one day after the Lower House did the same by 484 votes against 70.
Brazil's Lower House Speaker Arthur Lira spoke Monday against Europe's protectionism, particularly that of France, and announced that a bill would be voted on this week providing for economic reciprocity. If approved, the Brazilian government would be prevented from signing any international agreements with clauses restricting the import of Brazilian products unless the signatory countries adopt equivalent environmental protection measures.
Carrefour CEO Alexandre Bompard announced this week that his company would not be selling meat imported from the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) in a move to prevent the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Union from pulling through. France's largest supermarket planned on suspending meat imports from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay “in solidarity with the agricultural sector.”
France will not be signing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the European Union and the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), the Russian news service Sputnik reported Thursday. In fact, Paris will do its utmost to block it.
French President Emmanuel Macron will be making state visits to Argentina and Chile as part of his South American tour to attend the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, it was confirmed in diplomatic circles. Macron will first get together with his Argentine colleague Javier Milei to discuss climate change and other bilateral issues between Nov. 16 and 17. Then, he will head for Brazil's gathering of world leaders on Nov. 18 and 19. And then he will travel to Santiago for talks with Gabriel Boric Font.
French citizens have been urged to avoid all travel to Venezuela whenever possible after the arrest of three US nationals, two Spaniards and one Czech national said to be plotting to assassinate President Nicolás Maduro with the endorsement of the CIA.
A joint statement from the leaders of United Kingdom, Germany and France called for an immediate end to fighting Gaza, the release of Israeli hostages and the prevention of further escalation, especially on the part of Iran and its allies.
Certain parts of Friday's opening ceremony at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games were deemed to have a religious connotation that hurt the feelings of Christians and prompted an apology from the organizers.