020 7898 0500Much of the focus centred around the Dutch elections yesterday. Polling closed at 9 pm local time. The campaigning leading up to the election was a close-fought affair.
The winning candidate appears to be current Prime Minister Rutte, with 95% of the votes counted. However, the Dutch Electoral Council will not announce the official result until Tuesday next week. The next stage will revolve around coalition talks.
This is the first of three crucial Eurozone elections this year. The French elections are due in April and the German vote in September. Wilders’ radical policies have seen him pledge to take the Netherlands out of the EU, close all mosques and ban the Koran. A loss for Wilders would suggest a step back for populism, but if it’s announced that Wilders has won a large number seats, it may provide a boost for French right-wing leader Marine Le Pen in the build-up to the nation’s election next month.
Today much of the focus will be on the exit polls from the Dutch elections, and forecasting the ramifications. From a data perspective, the final reading on inflation is due, which is not expected to change from 2%.
