France's general strike, which began on May 5, is set to last until this week. The strike demands opposition to the government's pension reform, but French enterprises are worried that the strike will cause serious losses to the current economy. French News 24 and French state television 2 commented that although the strike was mainly concentrated in the field of public transport, the continued traffic paralysis would directly affect the economy. BFM also believes that the strike wave sweeping across France is a serious threat to France's fledgling economy at a time when the "yellow vest" campaign, which lasted nearly a year, has just subsided.


Passenger "no car to ride"


The transportation industry is likely to be the biggest loser of the strike. Since the start of the strike, the national railway operation rate in France is only about 50%, and the first weekend after the strike is only 10% - 15% of the trains can guarantee operation. In Paris, the "disaster area", the proportion of public transport operation is only 20% - 30%. Last Sunday, only two driverless lines, line 1 and line 14, and part of the line connecting to the airport were available for operation.


The strike also led to the cancellation or delay of high-speed trains connecting France and Germany, especially trains to and from Paris, Strasbourg and other major cities. 30% of Air France's domestic flights and nearly 10% of its mid-range flights have been cancelled, and many French flights have also been cancelled by European airlines such as Lufthansa, easyJet and Ryanair. At the same time, French truck drivers protested against the increase of fuel tax, and the protest to block highways and toll stations launched since the end of November spread all over the country.


"I think the strikers should have at least a sense of responsibility". On the day of the strike on December 5, Aslan, President of the Federation of French small and medium enterprises, told the media that the strike of the transport sector alone on that day would bring 400 million euros of economic losses to France, especially to the surrounding areas of Paris, accounting for half of the total losses. He also said the French economy would suffer more if the strike continued.


Shop passenger flow greatly reduced

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"This strike makes us more worried about the damage to the image of Paris," the French newspaper Le Monde quoted people from the French hotel industry association as saying on the 7th, on the first day of the strike, the number of hotel reservations in Paris and its administrative region decreased by 30% - 40%, and more than 1200 retail stores in langes market, the world's largest wholesale market for raw and fresh food materials, have been ahead of schedule Increase the inventory to resist the traffic jam caused by the strike. According to the announcement issued by the French Federation of small and medium enterprises, French businesses have suffered a heavy blow due to the continuous "yellow vest" campaign, and Amazon and other e-commerce take business from many block stores, making it difficult for physical businesses to continue.


According to the data analysis of the French Institute of statistics and economics, the Paris people's Daily said that the strike on December 5 alone reduced the turnover of stores across the country by about 30%, that of Paris by 50%, and that of Strasbourg and Marseille by 60%.


Endangering the economic pillar


"The general strike may hurt France's economic pillar," Germany's "economic weekly" analysis said on the 8th, France's general strike crisis in the end how big, the key depends on the duration. If the time lasts for more than months like the protests in Hong Kong, France's transport, hotel, catering, retail and other tourism related industries will be seriously damaged. Famous tourist sites in Paris, such as the Eiffel Tower, have been closed since the first day of the strike. Large Paris museums such as the Louvre are also restricted. Tourist boats on the Seine also saw a big drop. Laurent Duke of the French hotel industry association criticized the weekend when people started Christmas shopping, "the strike blocked everything."


"This may just be the beginning," German news television said Tuesday. If the strike lasts until Christmas, it will hurt France's Christmas economy. Christmas sales even account for 1 / 3 to 1 / 2 of the annual turnover of many retail stores. And the strike boom could be "Europeanized" and spread to neighboring countries such as Germany. The European economy may add another factor of instability.