The results are being finalised for the European elections and while the EPP and S&D still hold the balance of power there’s been a very big gain by far right and left parties and other independents.
France will be grabbing all the headlines with what looks like a big win for the Front national.
In the UK UKIP trounced the Conservatives and Labour
Germany’s main parties maintained the status quo and that relief has seen the Dax hit a new all time high at 9876. Stocks are posting decent gains, Italy especially up 2.70%.
The euro has taken a run up to 1.3644 from an overnight low at 1.3615
On first impressions it seems that there is some discontent from people towards Europe and in countries like France and Greece where there were big gains from the far leaning parties. Whether it’s reflective of how people would vote in their respective national elections remains to be seen but it’s certainly a wake up call for national leaders. If the UK is anything to go by then it looks more like a protest vote as while UKIP cleaned in the European poll, the main parties still maintained their strength in the local elections we had last week.
EU’s Dijsselbloem has just been speaking from the ECB conference in Sintra, Portugal saying that the election results aren’t surprising and that they are now an assignment for the EU. He also says that growth rates in the EU are too low.
Here’s the results overall and by country, as they stand via the BBC and European parliament
