After two years of comparative stability, some European currencies were so shaky last week that devaluation talk again filled the air. The French franc was in the most trouble. Between midsummer and early October, the franc on the Paris black bourse had cheapened from 365 to 400 to the dollar (official rate: 350). Last week it plummeted to 440.
Although inflation had been creeping up in France for some months, the headlong drop was unexpectedly sudden. Frenchmen evidently feared that France's rearmament effort will be a real strain on resources when it changes from a sizable figure (on paper) of 10%...
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