France and Its ETF Have Reason to Be Wary

Although France’s exchange traded fund (ETF) the iShares MSCI France Index (EWQ) is up 14.1% year-to-date, its performance could change if the country doesn’t cut its deficits. Euro group president Jean-Claude Juncker called on France to cut the level of its public spending, which is proportionally the highest in the European Union, reports Greg Keller for The Financial News Limited. Juncker said he also would like to see France achieve a balanced budget by 2010.

France’s economy and ETF recently received a helping hand from its increase in exports for the month of August, as the pace of global economic growth helped overcome appreciating currencies and higher financing costs, reports Simone Meier and Christian Vits for Bloomberg. However, if the euro continues to rise and stay at its recent highs, the subsequent rising oil prices and higher credit costs could pull the country’s growth down next year.