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Sovereign Debt: China In A Bull Shop

• China’s belated baulking at an IMF-approved deal between Zambia and its Eurobond creditors has put the whole future of the Common Framework in doubt and places many developing countries in even more dire economic straits.

By Alastair Newton

France Unemployment Rate 7.4% (consensus 7.3%) in Q3-23

- France's unemployment rate in Q3-23 stands at 7.4%, rising slightly beyond the 7.3% consensus estimate and indicating a weakening labour market.
- This is the highest unemployment rate since Q3-21 and 0.18 percentage points above the average of the past year, but it remains 0.1pp below the long-run average.

France Flash HICP Inflation 4.5% y-o-y (consensus 4.5%) in Oct-23

- France's flash HICP inflation in October 2023 stood at 4.5% year-on-year, as expected, marking a decrease from the previous month's rate of 5.6% and the lowest growth since February 2022.
- The current inflation rate is 1.63 percentage points below the one-year average, indicating a deceleration in price growth, albeit to still-excessive levels.

France Flash PMI Composite 45.3 (consensus 44.4) in Oct-23

- France's Flash PMI Composite for October 2023 shows a slight improvement from the previous reading, indicating a contraction in economic activity but with signs of stabilization.
- The Flash PMI Manufacturing and Flash PMI Services also depict contraction, implying ongoing challenges, especially in the manufacturing sector where conditions deteriorated.