Euro ‘could CRUMBLE if anti-EU candidates thrive in French election’, analysts warn
THE euro could be set for a catastrophic fall this Sunday as French voters go to the polls in the first round of the presidential election, analysts have warned.
Rupert Harrison: Marine Le Pen victory would end the Eurozone
Top currency experts have warned of a “nightmare scenario” for the value of the common currency if disgruntled voters choose the two anti-EU candidates.
A Marine Le Pen victory could send the euro into meltdown
Hard left Jean-luc Melenchon would also pull France out of the EU
The anti-Brussels Front National’s Marine Le Pen is widely expected to burst through into the second round of voting, with centrist Emmanuel Macron also predicted to make the cut.
But analysts say the euro’s value could plummet to a new low if the French electorate shuns Mr Macron in favour of anti-EU, hard-left candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon.
Mr Melenchon was considered a dark horse early in the campaign, but the unabashed communist has surged in the opinion polls to 19 per cent – tied with scandal-hit conservative hopeful François Fillon.
Iain Clark, managing director at Efficient Frontier Consulting, and Saeed Amen, founder of Cuemacro, said the shock vote could lead the value of the euro to drop five to ten per cent against the US dollar and the pound.
The eurozone could be sent into crisis following Sunday's vote
This would be the lowest level the struggling currency has seen since the Brexit vote last June.
The analysts added that a win for Mrs Le Pen in the second round could lead to an eight to 15 per cent drop in value.
But some financial experts have predicted a Le Pen win could give a boost to the British economy.
Ms Le Pen’s protectionist policies could lead to investors seeing the UK as a port of economic security, according to Mark Nash of Old Mutual Global Investors.