Opinion · Hometown Post
The French protests are clashing with the reality of France’s enormous debt : Planet Money In recent months, there have been serious whispers about an outrageous possibility: that one day soon, France — the seventh largest economy in the world — might not be able to pay back its debts. Right now, protesters in France are complaining about crumbling schools, the lack of teachers, and the overall high cost of living. But the government is struggling to find the money to address all the country’s problems.
France is in a lot of debt. It has been borrowing record amounts of money. So have many other countries including the U.S., the U.K., Italy, Canada.
For more than a decade, there has been an international borrowing spree going on. Now, as interest rates climb, that borrowing spree might have to come to an end. And the consequences could get ugly.
Live Show: Planet Money Live at Kilkenomics. Kilkenny, Ireland Nov. 6th - 7th Read: Our book: Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces That Shape Your Life Our weekly longform Planet Money newsletter Our weekly Indicator round-up newsletter Follow: Instagram TikTok YouTube Facebook Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening.
Learn more at plus.npr.org . This episode was hosted by Jeff Guo and Erika Beras. It was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler and edited by Marianne McCune.
It was fact-checked by Charlotte Isidore and Sierra Juarez. Jimmy Keeley and Travis Hagan engineered the show. Alex Goldmark is the executive producer of Planet Money .
Planet Money NPR October 30, 2026 8:15 PM ET By , , , , Is this how the great international borrowing spree ends? Download Embed < iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-6023794/nx-s1-mx-6023794-1" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> People take part in a demonstration part of a nationwide day of actions called by high-school students unions who for days have been demanding better learning conditions in protests punctuated by violent confrontations, in Marseille on October 8, 2026. Miguel Medina/AFP via Getty Images hide caption Miguel Medina/AFP via Getty Images In recent months, there have been serious whispers about an outrageous possibility: that one day soon, France — the seventh largest economy in the world — might not be able to pay back its debts.
Right now, protesters in France are complaining about crumbling schools, the lack of teachers, and the overall high cost of living. But the government is struggling to find the money to address all the country's problems. France is in a lot of debt.
It has been borrowing record amounts of money. So have many other countries including the U.S., the U.K., Italy, Canada. For more than a decade, there has been an international borrowing spree going on.
Now, as interest rates climb, that borrowing spree might have to come to an end. And the consequences could get ugly. Live Show: Planet Money Live at Kilkenomics.
Kilkenny, Ireland Nov. 6th - 7th Read: Our book: Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces That Shape Your Life Our weekly longform Planet Money newsletter Our weekly Indicator round-up newsletter Follow: Instagram TikTok YouTube Facebook Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show's perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org .
This episode was hosted by Jeff Guo and Erika Beras. It was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler and edited by Marianne McCune. It was fact-checked by Charlotte Isidore and Sierra Juarez.
Jimmy Keeley and Travis Hagan engineered the show. Alex Goldmark is the executive producer of Planet Money . Music: Universal Production Music - "Fou de toi," "Paysages," and "Un verre de sun" NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews.
Anyone who makes such an offer or request is not an NPR employee and does not represent NPR.
Source: NPR
