Krugman links French pension generosity to student unrest and bond market issues

Paul Krugman stated that the bond market turmoil and mass student protests in France are related to generational tradeoffs in government spending. He highlighted that France's official retirement age was 62 in 2023, while the average actual retirement age was 60.4 years. Krugman drew a line from this retirement generosity to the student unrest, which is fueled by complaints over underinvestment in public education.

Krugman suggests that fiscal pressure caused largely by France's generous government spending is a contributing factor to the current instability. He also noted that high debt and deficits driving up French bond yields are not unique to the eurozone’s second largest economy.