Finance: Research, Policy and Anecdotes

At the end the results were clearer than predicted and feared.  65% for the candidate of the liberal and democratic centre. As much as this looks like a win, there was not really a democratic choice, as the main opposition party is a nationalistic, backward-looking, anti-European movement. If there is no choice between two democratic opponents, we cannot call it a democratic choice! 

So, as much as we are supposed to celebrate Macron’s win tonight, this is the clearest warning signal yet that we cannot take the progress Europe has made over the past seven decades for granted.  A wake-up call to make the gains from globalization and European integration accessible to all. A wake-up call to more fairly distribute the benefits and losses from globalization and technological change. Certainly, a wake-up call for France whose socio-economic model has been broken for a long time.  But also a wake-up call for Europe, for a more inclusive Europe, a more solidary Europe, a Europe not beholden by the legacy of past crises but future opportunities.

Overview