Global Daily: Hey chat, fix my finances

European equity indices fell sharply yesterday, pacing gains in sovereign yields for France, Italy and Greece. The spread between 10-year OATs and Bunds blew out to more than 140bps as the French government unveiled plans for €43bn worth of spending cuts and higher taxes in an effort to tackle France’s yawning fiscal deficit. The plan contains cuts to France’s social security system, including partial freezes to pensions indexation, trimming of retiree tax benefits, and a slower projected pace of healthcare spending growth.