Word: franc
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...crisis to another, the international monetary system has begun to display surprising strength and adaptability. Late in July, members of the International Monetary Fund agreed to create a new form of money, called Special Drawing Rights, that will help finance the-continued growth of world trade. In August, France devalued the franc without causing any real tremors. Last week the value of one of the world's most important currencies, the West German mark, was established not by government fiat but by the free market...
...France has proved particularly susceptible to the sickness since its workers returned from their August vacations to the cold realities of President Georges Pompidou's austerity program. Pompidou rightly fears that a round of wage increases would force him to cheapen the recently devalued franc still further. A policy of intransigence, on the other hand, could lead to massive shutdowns. There was some speculation that Pompidou might have hit upon a middle alternative last week when he suggested that Renault workers be made shareholders in the factory (Charles de Gaulle's "participation" plan, by contrast, offered workers...
Price Police. In the wake of his 121% devaluation of the franc, Pompidou launched an austerity program that featured a freeze on most prices. Despite the efforts of the Finance Ministry's "price police" - an army of footsore men in serge suits who carry large account books and check prices in thousands of shops - France's legion of small shop keepers almost immediately began pushing prices up. In Paris, roughly 1 in every 10 shopkeepers broke the line and marked up prices an average of 5%. Last week the workers, reacting to the austerity program, were staying home...
...strikes, the bitter debates and the political battles that gripped France last week could not alone explain the nation's unusually somber mood. When Georges Pompidou succeeded Charles de Gaulle three months ago, his countrymen were ready for a good long vacation. Except for the jolt of the franc's devaluation, they got it. But as the schools reopened, as the Chamber of Deputies resumed business in earnest, as "the season" in Paris began, 50 million Frenchmen were suddenly confronted with the sad fact that, from now on, their country is likely to play in the world...
...most dramatic reminder of France's reduced role was the 12½% devaluation of the franc, which has forced some unfavorable economic comparisons not only with the U.S., but also with West Germany or even The Netherlands and Italy. France's showcase industries remain a pride and a strength. The Caravelle, first of the second-generation jet transports, the famous Mirage jet fighter of Marcel Dassault and the largely French-designed supersonic Concorde testify to the inventiveness of France's aeronautical industry. But for lack of more mundane skills, particularly in the important areas of engineering...