Following the end of the European Parliament election, French President Emmanuel Macron stunned his nation—and the rest of the world—when he called a snap parliamentary election.
The election, set to be held on June 30 and July 7, was, according to The Guardian, a reaction to the results of the European far right in the EP elections who, in the words of Macron, “are progressing everywhere on the continent.”
“I have confidence in our democracy, in letting the sovereign people have their say. I’ve heard your message, your concerns, and I won’t leave them unanswered,” said the president.
Confidence, however, is not a headlining word among investors in regard to the French stock market.
Last week’s announcement erased approximately $258 billion from the market value of French companies, according to Bloomberg.
"We are in a period where there are no certainties for three-to-four weeks and the market could unfortunately become more unstable," portfolio manager at Kairos Partners Alberto Tocchio told the newspaper.
The nation’s stocks are now collectively worth $3.13 trillion, which is low enough to kick Paris from its number one spot among European stock exchanges.
In its place is now the United Kingdom, also in the midst of a snap election, whose stocks have a collective valuation of $3.18 trillion.
The British FTSE 100 has been slowly climbing since its severe 2020 drop, and is now reaching all-time high index levels.
The “Footsie” has risen 5.46% year-to-date.
Comparatively, the French CAC 40 has also been steadily climbing throughout the year. With this recent dip, however, the index is currently down 0.17% year-to-date, but is seemingly stabilizing.
