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France is facing an unsustainable debt trajectory and high bond yields, but the situation is different from the Greek sovereign debt crisis in 2010, said Georges Lagarias, chief economist at Fourvesmazer.

“France was not insolvent to begin with, A, B, the big countries, the G7 countries, they are not going to have a debt crisis in the 21st century. That is the purview of the smaller countries. Greece was already insolvent before any of this happened. , Lagarias told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe.”

France has faced months of political instability since snap elections in the summer, with its minority government ousted in a no-confidence vote on Wednesday.

France’s borrowing costs have risen to a 12-year high relative to Germany amid concerns it won’t be able to pass a deficit-cutting budget, while its bond yields are on par with Greece’s for the first time on record. Analysts viewed this as a symbolic milestone given that France’s fundamentals are stronger and Greece’s market history is turbulent, with its bonds being downgraded to junk status in 2010 and subsequently bailed out.

“France is going through something, it’s political turmoil… there may be some jitters in the bond market because the bond market is very jittery about things like inflation and tariffs. So, you know, some of that may trickle down into the bond market going forward. There are some uncertainties about the development, but France is not Greece,” Lagarias said.

“We have to admit that this is not a eurozone crisis and (countries) can borrow their way out of this, just not at the rate they are used to. Our debt is accelerating and this is happening around the world right now. The United States is to blame.”

—Jenny Reed

Oil giants Shell and Statoil announced plans on Thursday to merge their UK offshore oil and gas assets to create a joint energy company.

Read the full story here.

— Sam Meredith

UK Competition and Markets Authority Monday Approve merger Telecommunications companies Vodafone and Three.

The CMA set a number of conditions for the 15 billion pound ($19.5 billion) deal, including a commitment by the two companies to invest billions in rolling out a joint 5G network across the UK

The group had previously expressed concern that the combined entity would result in higher prices for tens of millions of customers or result in less service for some users.

Read the full story here.

—Jenny Reed

The price is Bitcoin It broke the long-awaited $100,000 benchmark for the first time on Wednesday night.

The flagship cryptocurrency was last up more than 7% at $102,879.60, according to Coin Metrics. It had previously risen to $103,844.05.

The move came hours after President-elect Donald Trump announced plans to nominate Paul Atkins to serve as SEC chairman. On the same day, Federal Reserve Chairman Powell said in a speech at the DealBook conference that Bitcoin is “just like gold, except that it is virtual and digital.”

For more on Bitcoin’s historic milestone, read our full story.

— Tanaya Machel

As 2025 approaches, continued uncertainty in financial markets raises questions about portfolio construction and how to invest across asset classes.

A long-term investor is participating in the market now by staying invested and diversified.

“We believe it is key to remain invested and view any potential correction as a technical and temporary opportunity to enter the market,” said Aneka Beneby, portfolio manager at Julius Baer International.

She also revealed how and what she’s allocating ahead of the New Year.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Amala Balakrishna

European markets are expected to open lower on Thursday.

British FTSE 100 German stocks are expected to open 17 points lower at 8,342 German DAX Index France fell 7 points to 20,225 CAC Down 28 points to 7,275 points, Italy FTSE MIB It fell 82 points to 33,747, according to IG data.

There are no major earnings or data releases in Europe on Thursday.

— Holly Elliot