La Belle France is voting for some beastly politics May 3, 2012 IT’S the stuff Gallic political dramas are made of. A highly polarised campaign; a lively eleventh-hour debate between the candidates; a sense of emergency; a country cut in two as on the fringe of civil war. Incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy will face his socialist challenger François Hollande and France’s very fate is at stake. But compare [...]
Sarkozy and Hollande clash on Eurozone during live TV debate May 2, 2012 FRENCH President Nicolas Sarkozy and socialist challenger Francois Hollande clashed repeatedly in their televised debate yesterday, with the conservative incumbent sounding angry and on the defensive four days before the vote. Trailing Hollande in opinion polls by six to 10 points before Sunday’s decisive runoff despite an energetic campaign and a lurch to the right [...]
Le Pen refuses to back Sarkozy May 1, 2012 ■ Nationalist leader Marine Le Pen dealt incumbent French President Nicolas Sarkozy a further blow yesterday by refusing to endorse his campaign. She came third in the first round with 17.9 per cent of the vote, but refused to back the centre-right leader in the run-off against socialist Francois Hollande, who came top. Le Pen [...]
SARKOZY NARROWING GAP ON HOLLANDE April 30, 2012 FRENCH President Nicolas Sarkozy has narrowed the gap between him and Socialist rival Francois Hollande with a week to go in the elections, according to the latest poll by Ipsos-Logica. Sarkozy trails with 47 per cent of the vote compared to Hollande’s 53 per cent, but has gained one percentage point since the last poll.
Sarkozy rules out alliance with National Front despite right turn April 25, 2012 NICOLAS Sarkozy ruled out any partnership with Marine le Pen’s National Front party yesterday despite stepping further to the right since losing the first round in the French presidential elections. In an interview on French radio yesterday, Sarkozy said, “We need to speak to the 18 per cent who voted for Marine le Pen.” “But [...]
French presidential election hits markets as yield spread widens April 23, 2012 NERVOUS investors weighed down on markets yesterday, after socialist Francois Hollande won the first round of voting in the French presidential election. Hollande has been an outspoken critic of austerity measures in the Eurozone and last week tweeted in support of a “fight against finance”. In Paris the CAC 40 index tumbled throughout the day, [...]
FTSE slumps as fresh fears over the Eurozone return to global markets April 23, 2012 BRITAIN’S top shares surrendered almost all of last week’s gains yesterday, led lower by commodity stocks and banks, as political uncertainty and disappointing economic data revived investor concerns over the Eurozone debt situation. The mood was darkened by data showing the Eurozone’s business slump deepened at a far faster pace than expected in April, suggesting [...]
FTSE hit by Eurozone jitters April 23, 2012 The FTSE 100 slipped this morning as investors reacted badly to uncertainty in France as Nicolas Sarkozy lost the first round of the country’s presidential election. Sarkozy was narrowly beaten by socialist Francois Hollande who has said that he favours spending to boost growth rather than austerity. Meanwhile Spain’s economy probably contracted 0.4 per cent [...]
France’s hopeless politicians will determine all of our futures April 23, 2012 WHAT a race. And what a mess. The useless Nicolas Sarkozy was given a bloody nose; the awful, economically illiterate Francois Hollande is in the lead ahead of the second round of the French presidential elections; and the horrendous national front grabbed almost a fifth of the vote. Listening to the candidates last night, it [...]
Hollande beats Sarko in French first round April 22, 2012 FRENCH Socialist François Hollande won the first round of a tight presidential election yesterday, beating incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy into second place. But his success was overshadowed by a huge surge in support for the National Front, the extreme nationalist party led by Marine Le Pen. Le Pen – daughter of the party’s previous leader – [...]