French stocks and the euro rallied on Monday following the first round of elections in France. The results suggest that the far right party is likely to heavily defeat President Emmanuel Macron but fall short of winning an outright majority in parliament. The CAC 40 index, representing the 40 biggest companies listed in Paris, rose 2.7% at the open. The euro reached its strongest level against the dollar in over two weeks. Yields on French government bonds were unchanged after widening against their German equivalents in recent days. Voter turnout was high, with Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party leading the first round. Macron’s Ensemble alliance came in third place. Analysts view the election results as better than feared but not as good as expected prior to the elections.
