Paris, 14 April 2023 (dpa/MIA) - Tens of thousands of people took to the streets again in France on Thursday in fresh protests against President Emmanuel Macron's unpopular pension reform.

The protests come a day ahead of an expected ruling by the Constitutional Council on the legality of the planned changes. It can overturn the reform in part or in full or declare it constitutional.

Trade unions called for the latest rallies and were expecting 400,000 to 600,000 participants.

On the 12th day of the nationwide action, protesters blocked roads, railroad tracks and refineries.

In Paris banks and expensive stores secured their front windows with wooden boards but nevertheless demonstrators broke into the headquarters of the French luxury group LVMH and set off firecrackers.

The authorities deployed 11,500 police officers, 4,200 of them in Paris alone.

There were blockades of roads, railways and refineries across the country, but disruptions remained manageable in the end.

Rubbish collectors in Paris went on strike again and the CGT union threatened to turn the capital into a public dump until the reform was withdrawn.

Clashes between protesters and police were reported in Nantes and Rennes.

If the Constitutional Council essentially confirms the reform, there is no chance for an appeal, but unions are already threatening further demonstrations, they said on Thursday.

The head of the CFDT union, Laurent Berger, already mentioned May 1 as the next day of protest.

Macron's invitation to dialogue was received angrily. The new head of the CGT union, Sophie Binet, said they had wanted to talk to Macron for a month, but having a meeting when everything has been decided makes no sense.

The protests are directed against the gradual increase of the retirement age from 62 to 64. The centre-right government wants to close a looming gap in the pension fund with the reform.

The dispute intensified because the government pushed the text through the National Assembly without a vote.

The protests, which had been peaceful for weeks, have since been overshadowed by massive violence.

Macron wants the reform to come into force by the end of the year.

Photo: MIA archive