France

PARIS (Reuters) - France’s competition watchdog on Monday fined iPhone maker Apple 1.1 billion euros for anti-competitive behaviour in its distribution network and an abuse of economic dependence on its resellers.

Two of Apple’s wholesalers, Tech Data and Ingram Micro, were fined 63 million euros and 76 million euros respectiely, for unlawfully agreeing on prices, the authority said.

PARIS, March 16 (Xinhua) -- Candidates of French President Emmanuel Macron's The Republic on the Move (LERM) party failed in Sunday's first-round municipal election, clouding the president's plan to build a local power base for his party ahead of the 2022 presidential race.

According to exit polls, the LERM failed to uproot the bastions long-held by socialists and conservatives in the largest French cities.

PARIS (AP) — French voters went to the polls Sunday to choose mayors and other local leaders but the second round of the vote was put into question amid concerns over low turnout and the rapid spread of the new coronavirus across the country.

Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said the turnout for Sunday’s vote, which should be known overnight, will clearly be lower than usual as many people didn’t go to polling stations over fears that would fuel the spread of the virus that has upended travel plans, closed schools and rattled financial markets.

PARIS, March 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — France drastically stepped up its measures against the spread of the coronavirus, announcing the closure of all non-essential public places including restaurants and cafes from midnight (2300 GMT).

“I have decided on the closure until further notice from midnight of places that receive the public that are non-essential to the life of the country,” Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told reporters.

“This includes notably cafes, restaurants, cinemas and discos.”

PARIS, March 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The number of coronavirus cases worldwide passed 150,000 on Saturday driven by a spike in infections in Italy.

Italy announced 3,497 new cases on Saturday, bringing the global total to 151,797, with 5,764 deaths across 137 countries and territories.

Italy, the worst-hit country outside of China where the outbreak began in December, has now registered a total of 21,157 cases and 1,441 deaths.

10 Mar 2020; MEMO: Saudi Arabia must coordinate on oil prices to avoid economic disruption to other countries, France’s Minister of the Economy and Finance, Bruno Le Maire, said yesterday.

Oil prices plunged by more than 30 per cent yesterday, dragging financial markets down as Saudi Arabia began a price war with Russia.

PARIS, March 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — France has banned gatherings of more than 1,000 people to try and slow the spread of COVID-19, the health minister said, while the number of French lawmakers infected with the virus rose to four.

Oliver Veran confirmed the beefed-up measures but said officials would issue a list of events considered “useful to national life” that would be allowed to continue – such as demonstrations.

9 March 2020; AFP: The world is set for its first annual decline in oil consumption in more than a decade due to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, the IEA said Monday.

In its latest report -- which did not take into account an oil price war after Saudi Arabia and Russia failed to agree to continue production cuts -- the International Energy Agency chopped its current demand forecast by 1.1 million barrels per day (mbd) in its base case scenario as the coronavirus continues to spread around the world.

PARIS, March 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A French lawmaker has been hospitalised after contracting coronavirus, the National Assembly announced Saturday, bringing the number of proven cases in the lower house of parliament to three.

The death toll in France mounted to 11 people with 716 confirmed cases nationwide.

The National Assembly did not name the legislator who recently caught the disease, but said the third case was a female parliamentarian.

PARIS (AP) — Crossing more borders, the new coronavirus hit a milestone, infecting more than 100,000 people worldwide as it wove itself deeper into the daily lives of millions, infecting the powerful, the unprotected poor and vast masses in between.