NEWS
Strikes in Paris-Orly Airport Next Week - French air traffic controllers have filed a strike notice for next week, the latest action in their ongoing dispute over working conditions. The strike will affect air traffic from the 11th to the 13th of June at Paris Orly airport. Other French airports are unaffected.
Global Warming Threshold - Global warming caused by human activity is accelerating at an unprecedented rate, with the opportunity to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C nearly gone, according to a UN study published Wednesday. Leading researchers will provide annual updates to support COP negotiations and political discussions. The current decade is crucial for achieving the 2015 Paris Agreement goals of keeping global warming well below 2°C, ideally to 1.5°C.
Natural Disaster in Nice - The bad weather on March 2nd and 3rd has been declared a natural disaster in Nice. That day, several road accidents resulted in the death of an Escota agent on the A8 motorway. Residents of Nice have until June 30th to submit their loss estimates to their insurance companies for compensation.
Shooting Near Toulon - A shooting has occurred last night, a man was seriously injured in Hyères, near Toulon. Taken into Toulon’s hospital, his life is no longer in danger. Shots were fired onto the man from a stolen vehicle, which has since been found. The circumstances of the shooting remain unknown. An investigation has been opened.
Nice's Artist 'Ben' has Died - He was found in his apartment this morning. Benjamin Vautier was best known in the city for his famous signatures that decorated most of the city. He also owned the shop ‘une drôle de boutique’ where he sold signed and decorated items and second-hand records.
Aix is the Most Attractive Student City of France - Aix-en-Provence is the most attractive student city of France. A French newspaper has published its track record of most the attractive student cities of France. 32 criteria have been considered such as living environment, leisure, accommodation, budget and safety. Aix, Angers and Dijon are in the top three. Marseille has ranked 22nd and Nice 33rd.
BUSINESS
New banknotes featuring King Charles III are now in circulation but may take time to become common. These will replace damaged notes or meet rising demand. Existing notes with Queen Elizabeth II's portrait are still usable. Despite the new notes, cash use is declining, with many predicting a cashless society. However, a significant portion of people still rely on cash daily, even as 6,000 bank branches have closed in nine years.
Indian stocks have plummeted after election results indicated Prime Minister Modi's party might not secure a majority. A stock index, the NSE Nifty 50, dropped nearly 6%, its steepest fall since March 2020. The rupee slid 0.5% against the US dollar. Modi's party (BJP) may need to form a coalition, causing uncertainty over economic policies. Analysts expressed concerns about the impact on investment and infrastructure development. Markets had initially soared on exit polls predicting a BJP victory, but doubts over a majority led to significant stock declines in the Bank of India and oil and gas firms.
Indosuez Wealth Management, part of the Bank Crédit Agricole, has acquired a majority stake in Degroof Petercam, an independent financial partner. This creates a European leader in wealth management with €200 billion in client assets and 4,500 employees. This merger enhances Crédit Agricole's presence in Belgium and offers significant synergies. Clients will benefit from combined expertise and expanded services. The deal is expected to increase Crédit Agricole’s net income by €150-200 million by 2028.
SPORTS
Basketball – the AS Monaco has defeated Paris 90-80 for the first match of the finale last night.
Tennis - Carlos Alcaraz won against Stefanos Tsitsipas to set up an exciting French Open semi-final against incoming world number one Jannik Sinner. Spanish third seed Alcaraz, 21, won 6-3 7-6 (7-3) 6-4 against Greek ninth seed Tsitsipas on the Roland Garros clay. It was the second year running that Alcaraz had dismantled 2021 runner-up Tsitsipas in the quarterfinals at the Paris major.
Rugby Union - Johnny Matthews says Glasgow Warriors are motivated "to prove quite a few people wrong" as they prepare to face the Stormers in the United Rugby Championship quarter-final on Saturday.
Cycling - Australian cyclist Robert Stannard has been banned for four years due to abnormalities that were found in his Athlete Biological Passport (ABP). Stannard has also been fined 70% of his salary in 2018 and 2019.
WEATHER
Partially covered this beginning of afternoon with sunny intervals. Highs of 23 degrees in Nice and Cannes, 24 in Marseille and Toulon, and 28 degrees in Saint-Tropez.
Tonight, cloudy in most of the region with lows of 19 degrees.
Outlook for tomorrow, cloudy with sunny intervals throughout the day. Highs of 23 degrees.
Speed restrictions are in place on all major roads in the Alpes-Maritimes today because of a smog alert....
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A Marseille magistrate has been sentenced on the 17th of June in Nîmes for repeatedly avoiding motorway tolls using fake license plates. ...
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A major police stop-and-search operation along France's borders is being carried out today, involving 4,000 police officers, gendarmes and customs off...
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SFR has announced automatic compensation of 100GB of free mobile data for affected customers following a major network outage on the 16th of June....
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French President Emmanuel Macron will chair a high-level Security and Defence Council meeting at the Élysée Palace today Wednesday, June 18th at 4pm, ...
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