French Parliament Passes Law to Bolster Citizens' Purchasing Power

PARIS (Sputnik) - The Senate, the upper house of the French parliament, has approved a law on emergency measures to shore up citizens' purchasing power amid mounting inflation, French media reported on Wednesday.

The bill was backed by 245 lawmakers, with 27 voting against it and 72 abstentions, according to BFMTV broadcaster.

Measures to support purchasing power include a 4% indexation of social benefits, which, as the government believes, will help handle rising prices in the country amid soaring inflation.

Businesses will also be granted funding to provide their employees with bonuses of up to 3,000 euros ($3,050), which will be exempt from income tax.

According to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies, annual inflation rate in France has accelerated, reaching 5.8% in June. Food prices climbed by 4.2% over the year, while the cost of services increased by 3.2%, with the energy prices jumping by 28%.

Last week, French Minister of the Economy, Finance and Recovery Bruno Le Maire pledged to allocate additional 350 million euros ($355 million) for amendments to the French purchasing power law, bringing the total amount earmarked for this measure to 20.7 billion euros.