French strike cost: first trains after strike run today
Strikes against President Nicolas Sarkozy’s plan to raise the retirement age are costing the French economy between 200 million and 400 million euros ($142- $285 million) a day, Finance Minister Christine Legarde said.
“Beyond the costs, which are difficult to measure, it damages the attractiveness of France,”
Fuel shortages at French service stations will worsen today on insufficient deliveries, the refiners’ group Union Francaise des Industries Petrolieres said yesterday. France’s 11 active refineries are on strike until at least Oct. 28, and about a quarter of the country’s 12,300 service stations are dry. About four-fifths of France’s high-speed trains will run today, the national railroad said.