Governor of the Bank of France François Villeroy de Galhau arrives for the plenary of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) meeting, during the World Bank/IMF Annual Meetings in Washington, Friday, October 25, 2024. JOSE LUIS MAGANA / APDonald Trump’s victory in the American presidential election “increases risks for the global economy,” Bank of France chief François Villeroy de Galhau said on Wednesday, November 6. A second Trump term would bring “likely more protectionism” and an increased US budget deficit, Villeroy said at a conference in Lyon, southeast France.
Villeroy, a member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank, which sets monetary policy for the 20-nation eurozone said the protectionism and the budget deficit “both increases risks for the global economy and the need for Europe to remobilize.”
Trump’s promised higher import tariffs would “mean higher inflation, at least in the US, and most probably lower growth throughout the world”, Villeroy said – adding that increased uncertainty would also weigh on growth.
“The American election must sound the European wake-up call” after “a long drowse,” Villeroy said. He also highlighted that “Europe is entering this new context with clear weaknesses,” including “technological backwardness” and “political divisions.”