French Finance minister: yellow vest protests are a catastrophe for national economy

Anca Alexe 10/12/2018 | 07:54

French Finance minister Bruno Le Maire said that the yellow vest protests happening in recent weeks have been “a catastrophe” for the French economy, the BBC reports.

About 125,000 protesters came out on Saturday against fuel taxes, high living costs and other economic issues. More than 1,200 of them were arrested by French police.

Le Maire has described the situation as a crisis for both society and democracy, while president Macron is expected to announce new measures on Monday evening.

Paris has seen most of the damage from the protests, with shop windows smashed, cars burned and shops looted.

On Friday, the French retail federation told Reuters news agency that retailers had lost about EUR 1 billion since the protests first began on 17 November. Minister Le Maire last week said that the restaurant trade had declined by between 20 and 50 percent. There are also concerns that the protests could lead to a drop in tourism.