Emmanuel Macron's investiture ceremony will take place on Saturday, according to reports in French media. The ceremony, at which he will be officially appointed for his second term, will be held at the Elysees Palace. It's expected that he will appoint his prime minister shortly afterwards.
President Macron held a telephone conversation with President Putin this afternoon to discuss the conflict in Ukraine. It's the first time the two leaders have spoken since March 29.
A police officer has been placed in police custody after shooting a suspect who refused to stop at a checkpoint. The incident took place in the suburbs of Paris in the early hours of this morning. The officer has reportedly said that the shooting was accidental. An investigation has been opened by the General Inspectorate of the National Police.
Police in the Bouches-du-Rhone have made arrests in connection with a large number of opportunistic thefts from motor vehicles. Authorities had noted a significant upsurge in thefts during the month of April and succeeded in dismantling a team which was carrying out night raids in the areas of Istres and Aix-en-Provence. Police said that three people were arrested and 116 cases were solved.
Preparations are continuing for a bomb disposal operation in the sea off Marseille. The operation, which is scheduled to take place tomorrow, is aimed at neutralizing submerged historic ammunition from the Second World War. Divers from the French navy will be involved. The City of Marseilles said that the Catalans beach will be closed from 7 am to allow the removal of the ammunition and then the detonation of the device at sea. The Maritime Prefect has issued an order prohibiting certain bathing and maritime activities in the area.
BUSINESS
In the United states, the number of job vacancies reached 11.5 million at the end of March, which was the highest level since comparable figures were first compiled in December 2000. Job openings increased in the retail trade by 155,000 and in durable goods manufacturing by 50,000. Job openings decreased in transportation, warehousing, utilities, state and local government education and the federal government.
Energy company BP has reported an underlying profit of $6.2bn for the first three months of the year, up from $2.6bn in the same period last year. Oil and gas prices have risen sharply in recent months and BP said the increase was due in part to what it called "exceptional oil and gas trading". However, the company also recorded a pre-tax charge of 24 billion dollars resulting from its decision to divest its stake in Russian energy company Rosneft.
Australia's central bank has raised interest rates for the first time in more than a decade, lifting the cash rate to 0.35%. The govenor of the Reserve Bank of Australia Philip Lowe said that although inflation had picked up more quickly than expected, unemployment was low and there was evidence wage growth would improve. He said that it was time to withdraw "some of the extraordinary monetary support that was put in place to help the Australian economy during the pandemic".
SPORT
Football... One minutes silence will be observed before Olympique de Marseille's match against Feyenoord on Thursday. It's a tribute to mark the 30th anniversary of what is known as the Furiani disaster. On 5 May 1992 a stand collapsed at the Furiani stadium in Bastia in Corsica. 19 people lost their lives in the tragedy and over two thousand people were injured.
Rugby Union... The Chief Executive of the RFU, Bill Sweeney, has been admitted to hospital with a pulmonary embolism. He's expected to make a full recovery and the organization said that he will be recovering for the next few weeks.
The owners of a vast floating artificial island that had been planned for last summer off the coast of Mandelieu have won a legal battle to be allowed...
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The Monegasque State has successfully conducted its first national voluntary surrender operation, with 123 firearms being handed over by private indiv...
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A hospital in Cannes has had to postpone all non-urgent consultations and operations after falling victim to a cyberattack....
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Potential presence of broken glass in pizzas. A recall has been issued for several pizzas distributed by Auchan Avallon in France due to the potential...
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The Riviera's ski resorts are celebrating a record winter season.
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