How Emmanuel Macron’s France became Europe’s fiscal problem child

Summary

The Financial Times piece traces how France, under Emmanuel Macron, moved from being a comparatively stable eurozone economy to a standout fiscal concern for Europe. It argues that a mix of sustained high public spending, politically difficult reform choices, tax cuts and weaker-than-expected savings measures have widened deficits and pushed up public debt. The result is increased scrutiny from investors, rating agencies and Brussels, leaving the French government politically exposed and the wider euro area uneasy about contagion risks.

Key Points

France’s public finances have weakened despite repeated promises of fiscal consolidation.
Policy choices — including tax reliefs and limited spending restraint — have kept deficits larger than many peers.
Political resistance to tough reforms (pensions, labour market measures) has constrained durable correction of the budget position.
Markets and rating agencies have reacted, increasing borrowing costs and pressuring policymakers.
The deterioration has broader implications for eurozone stability and for how Brussels enforces fiscal rules across large member states.

Context and relevance

The article matters because France is the euro area’s second-largest economy. Weakening French public finances complicate European policy debates — from ECB decisions to rules on fiscal discipline — and can influence borrowing costs across the bloc. For investors, policymakers and businesses, the piece explains why French politics and budgets now carry outsized importance for eurozone risk assessments.

Why should I read this?

Short version: if you care about markets, the euro or where EU rules are heading, this is the tidy explainer you didn’t have time to read. It connects Macron-era policy choices to real-world fiscal pressures and shows why that matters beyond Paris.

Author’s take

Punchy and to the point — the FT flags that France’s fiscal drift is not just a domestic headache but a continental one. Read it to see how political compromises turned into economic headaches.