PARIS, Dec 2 (Reuters) – Francois Hollande’s bid to rescue
steel furnaces in France’s historic industrial heartland was to
be the mark of a president on the side of the workers and a
state with the courage to bring a multinational to heel.

But the two-month stand-off over steel giant ArcelorMittal’s
Florange plant in Lorraine has unnerved investors in
the euro zone’s second largest economy, confused France’s unions
and exposed his six-month-old government to international
ridicule.

PARIS (Reuters) – Francois Hollande’s bid to rescue steel furnaces in France’s historic industrial heartland was to be the mark of a president on the side of the workers and a state with the courage to bring a multinational to heel.

But the two-month stand-off over steel giant ArcelorMittal’s Florange plant in Lorraine has unnerved investors in the euro zone’s second largest economy, confused France’s unions and exposed his six-month-old government to international ridicule.

PARIS (Reuters) – Francois Hollande’s bid to rescue steel furnaces in France’s historic industrial heartland was to be the mark of a president on the side of the workers and a state with the courage to bring a multinational to heel.

But the two-month stand-off over steel giant ArcelorMittal’s (ISPA.AS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Florange plant in Lorraine has unnerved investors in the euro zone’s second largest economy, confused France’s unions and exposed his six-month-old government to international ridicule.

PARIS (Reuters) – European Union leaders must avoid cuts to the bloc’s 7-year spending plans that would damage fragile economic growth, France said on Monday, three days before a summit where Britain will lead calls for sharp budget reductions.

European Affairs Minister Bernard Cazeneuve told Reuters that France could not accept proposals to cut EU farm subsidies and vowed to push for a review of the EU budget rebate enjoyed by Britain and other northern nations.

PARIS (Reuters) – French officials angrily rejected a charge by Britain’s The Economist weekly on Friday that France was the “time-bomb at the heart of Europe”, accusing the magazine of sensationalist journalism.

The Economist’s front cover showed seven loafs of “baguette” bread held together by a French tricolor with a lit fuse protruding from the centre. Its main article raised concerns that President Francois Hollande’s economic reforms are not ambitious enough and so could jeopardize the future of the euro currency.

PARIS, Nov 13 (Reuters) – President Francois Hollande,
grappling a sickly economy and dismal ratings, vowed to make
France more competitive and urged voters to judge him on his
long-term success in reviving growth and jobs, not on short-term
mood swings.

In his first formal news conference after six months in
office, the Socialist leader asked to be measured by his ability
over five years to revitalise the country’s ailing industry and
halt a relentless rise in unemployment.

PARIS (Reuters) – In a cafe near the former site of Paris’s Bastille prison, activists held a meeting last month to decide whether to join unions in protesting the French government’s belt-tightening.

Only five people turned up at Cafe Maldoror, a favoured haunt of the radical left.

PARIS (Reuters) – In a cafe near the former site of Paris’s Bastille prison, activists held a meeting last month to decide whether to join unions in protesting the French government’s belt-tightening.

Only five people turned up at Cafe Maldoror, a favored haunt of the radical left.

PARIS (Reuters) – S&P’s move this week to cut credit ratings of French banks and signs the government is increasingly reluctant to embark on rapid economic reform are prompting investors to ask whether France can still justify its generous borrowing rates.

As long as France can persuade investors it is serious about cutting its public deficit in line with European Union pledges, it is likely to cling on to bond yields at record lows around two percent, only slightly dearer than those enjoyed by Germany.

PARIS (Reuters) – The French minister behind a media campaign to promote the “Made In France” brand rejected World Trade Organisation concerns over protectionism on Monday and blamed the world body for failing to halt unfair competition from China.

Industry Minister Arnaud Montebourg donned France’s emblematic striped Breton sweater for a magazine cover published last week to urge local consumers to favor French products such as food mixers by the 75-year-old Moulinex company.