Initial projections show the New Popular Front, which includes the Socialists and far-left France Unbowed, is poised to get between 170 and 215 seats in the National Assembly. Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally — which had been widely expected to win the most seats — is seen coming in third, after President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist alliance.
The euro fell after initial projections in France’s legislative elections pointed to a shock victory for the leftist alliance, whose campaign for a sharp increase in government spending risks unsettling investors.
The common currency slipped 0.3% to around US$1.0807 ($1.46) at the start of the session in Asia as traders began to digest an outcome they’d largely written off just days ago, and has the potential to reignite a tumultuous few weeks for markets.
