Europe

POISSY, France (AP) — From the market stall outside Paris that she’s run for 40 years, Yvette Robert can see first-hand how soaring prices are weighing on France’s presidential election and turning the first round of voting on Sunday into a nail-biter for incumbent President Emmanuel Macron.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Civilian evacuations moved forward in patches of battle-scarred eastern Ukraine on Saturday, a day after a missile strike killed at least 52 people and wounded more than 100 at a train station where thousands clamored to leave before an expected Russian onslaught.

MOSCOW, April 8. /TASS/: The euro declined to 79 rubles for the first time since June 2020 during the trading session on the Moscow Exchange.

The euro tumbled 3.01% to 79 rubles. The dollar lost 1.58% to 74.55 rubles.

The euro dropped later to 77.37 rubles, minus 5%. The dollar declined to 72.36 rubles (down 4.47%).

MOSCOW, April 8. /TASS/: The decision of the European Union to cancel import of Russian coal will after its member-states in the first instance, Russian Energy Minister Nikolay Shulginov said, cited by the official Telegram channel of the Ministry.

HELSINKI, April 8. /TASS/: Finland’s Foreign Ministry will issue permission to return to Russia the exhibits of Russia’s museum collections the Finnish Customs detained earlier.

MOSCOW, April 8. /TASS/: Russia will redirect coal supplies to alternative markets after the European Union refuses the shipments, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday.

"Shipments of coal, as Europe refuses [its] consumption, …, will be redirected to alternative markets," he said. "Of course, coal is still a very popular commodity," Peskov stressed.

MOSCOW, April 8. /TASS/: The current unprecedented sanctions against Russia will cause further collapse of all international institutions, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said.

GENOA (Italy), April 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — An Italian judge ordered 59 people, including former Atlantia CEO Giovanni Castellucci, to stand trial over the deadly collapse of a bridge in Genoa four years ago, judicial sources said.

The trial will start in Genoa on July 7, the sources added.

The road bridge, operated by Atlantia’s motorway unit Autostrade per l’Italia, collapsed in the port city on Aug 14, 2018, killing 43 people and laying bare the dire state of Italy’s crumbling infrastructure.

PARIS, April 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — World food prices hit an all-time high in March as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent “shocks” through markets for staple grains and vegetable oils, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization said Friday.

The disruption in export flows resulting from the Feb 24 invasion and international sanctions against Russia has spurred fears of a global hunger crisis, especially across the Middle East and Africa, where the knock-on effects are already playing out.

PARIS, April 8 (Reuters) - France's rising far-right is playing on the fears of the people, President Emmanuel Macron said in his last scheduled interview before Sunday's first-round presidential vote while his forecast lead over far-right candidate Marine Le Pen further evaporated.

The race appeared to be coming down to the two finalists of the 2017 election. Macron entered the race as a clear favourite but appears to have lost ground in opinion polls while Le Pen trends upward.