The latest issue of The Economist has a 14-page special report on France, which is described as "the time-bomb at the heart of Europe". The front cover features a bundle of baguettes tied up with a French 'tricolore' ribbon attached to a lit fuse. In fact, the baguettes represent sticks of dynamite ...
The Economist's leader concludes with this sobering assessment of France's economic prospects:
Unless Mr Hollande shows that he is genuinely committed to changing the path his country has been on for the past 30 years, France will lose the faith of investors—and of Germany. As several euro-zone countries have found, sentiment in the markets can shift quickly. The crisis could hit as early as next year. Previous European currency upheavals have often started elsewhere only to finish by engulfing France—and this time, too, France rather than Italy or Spain could be where the euro’s fate is decided. Mr Hollande does not have long to defuse the time-bomb at the heart of Europe.
You can read the full report here.
