French News Podcast — 2 August 2026

Episode guide

What happened

• Finance: Eurostat's flash estimate puts annual euro-area inflation at 2.9% in July, up from 2.8% in June. Energy inflation rose to 10.0%, while food, alcohol and tobacco slowed to 1.2%. The release is preliminary and may be revised. 1 Reuters reports that core inflation reached 2.5% and that the figures strengthened expectations of another European Central Bank rate increase, while economists remained more cautious. 2
• Technology: EU repair rules apply from 31 July 2026 to technically repairable products covered by EU law, including household and electronic goods such as phones and tablets. Manufacturers must offer repair at a reasonable time and price, provide repair information and spare parts, and extend the legal guarantee by at least 12 months when a consumer chooses repair instead of replacement during the guarantee period. 34
• Politics: Italy announced a one-month suspension of Schengen arrangements with Spain, with targeted checks on non-EU nationals arriving from Spain by air or sea. EU citizens are not affected. The measure followed the mass arrival of migrants in Ceuta and was formally approved by Italy's Interior Ministry. 56 Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani described the measure as necessary for security and Europe's borders; his statement is a government position, not a general closure of Schengen. 7

French to notice

• remonter de… à… — "to rise from… to…": L'inflation est remontée de deux virgule huit à deux virgule neuf pour cent.
• plutôt que — "rather than": Je préfère réparer mon téléphone plutôt que d'en acheter un nouveau.
• ne pas être concerné par — "not to be affected by": Les citoyens européens ne sont pas concernés par ces contrôles ciblés.