Evening Update Thursday 31 August 2023

French economy minister Bruno Le Maire has said that an agreement has been reached with producers and distributors which will see the price of five thousand supermarket products fall or remain the same. Speaking on French TV this lunchtime he said that the number of products represented about a quarter of those on offer in supermarkets.

Consumer prices in France have increased by 4.8% in August, according to provisional data from French government statistics body INSEE. The figure is up from 4.3% the previous month. It said that the increase in inflation is due to the rebound in energy prices. Food prices slowed down for the fifth consecutive month as did those of manufactured products and services.

A police officer in Marseille has been charged with several offences including "aggravated violence" towards a man during the riots after the arrest of Nihal in Nanterre. It marks the fourth investigation into alleged police violence against participants in the protests in Marseille.

The National Police in the Alpes-Maritimes have said that the technical problem with the emergency number 17 has now been fixed. The problem affected the number for about two hours this afternoon but calls are now being received as normal.

A man is in a serious condition in hospital after being hit by a train near Frejus early yesterday evening. Trains were suspended for a time in both directions. An investigation has been opened to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident.

A forty year old woman has died after being attacked in the street in a village in the Savoie department. A search is underway for her attacker involving gendarmes, soldiers and a helicopter. The incident happened in La Croix-de-la-Rochette this morning.

Temporary traffic changes are being put in place in La Condamine in Monaco from this coming Monday because of building works. Various closures and diversions will be made to avenue Prince Pierre, rue de La Turbie and the top of rue Grimaldi in the area near the Place d'Armes. The works are expected to last until 22 December. Further details are available on www.gouv.mc

Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu has been in Toulon today. He presided over the ceremony of taking office of the new Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral N. Vaujour. The ceremony took place on a helicopter carrier.

An accident involving a light vehicle towing a trailer caused major disruption to traffic on the A8 motorway in the Bouches-du-Rhone this morning. The accident happened around 11 a.m. on the motorway towards Salon-de-Provence between the Coudoux and Aix Ouest interchanges. There was significant disruption in the direction of Salon-de-Provence.

 

BUSINESS

UK car production rose by about 31% in July, which is the sixth consecutive month of growth, according to the latest figures from industry body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. Despite this growth, however, output remained 29.4% lower than pre-pandemic numbers in July 2019. Production of the latest, high-tech hybrid electric, plug-in hybrid and battery electric vehicles rose once again, representing almost two in every five cars made in July.

Euro area inflation stood at 5.3% in August, according to an initial estimate from EU statistics body Eurostat. The figure was higher than expected by many economists but was stable compared to July. Food, alcohol and tobacco rose by 9.8%.

 

SPORT

Motorsports... Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have both signed new two year deals with Mercedes. Hamilton has signed a new contract that will extend his period with the team to 13 years. Russell, who joined Mercedes in 2022, has also signed a two-year deal.

Football.... Romelu Lukaku has joined Roma on a season-long loan from Chelsea. He spent last season on loan with Inter Milan. He plays for Belgium at national level. Lukaku will be reunited with coach Jose Mourinho at Roma.

 

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