A NEW SAVIOUR FOR FRANCE AND THE WHOLE OF EUROPE?

France's new President is calling for a European rethink to foster growth strategies. But he will face two monumental challenges. The first is to solve France's overwhelming debt and fiscal crisis- in the eyes of many economists, the most serious in Europe. Currently, France's public deficit is 5.2% of GDP and public debt is 85.8% of GDP. France is still able to borrow 10 year money at below 3%, compared to 1.6% for Germany, around 2% for the UK and 4.7% for deeply troubled Spain. For the market, keeping a lid on the debt crisis will remain the key priority in order to save the Euro itself.

How will France be able to stimulate growth, maintain certain provisions of welfare and tackle the debt- all at once? 

The second challenge the new President will face is that he will be obliged to abandon many of the ideological mantras which have both fired and hobbled the French left for decades. This will be especially difficult because so many of his electors actuallybelieve those mantras.