Elections and the Franc The first ballot in the French
local elections on Sunday gave results that are an encouragement both to the Front Populaire and the Chautemps Government. The Front Populaire obtained 62 per cent. of the votes cast, as com- pared with 55 per cent. of the votes in the last General Election ; for the Government it is specially encouraging that moderate opinion, as expressed by the Radicals and Socialists, dominated, while the Communists lost. These results are not final, but they are some assurance that the Front Populaire's present policy, as revealed in M. Bonnet's reforms and in the " pause " in the reform programme, is acceptable to the country, and that no abrupt change is called for. This impression, together with other influences, had an immediate effect on the position 'of the franc ; the announce- ment of the £9,000,000 Swiss loan to the French Railways increased confidence, while conditions on the Stock Exchanges in London and Wall Street persuaded speculators to buy francs. The French Exchange Equalisation Account, which last week was buying francs at 15o to the £, this week was selling at 149, and later at 147, in an effort to prevent the franc rising too fast, and acquired some Lto,000,000 in sterling and dollars. The Government's position, and the franc's, is stronger than for some weeks past.
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