Marine Le Pen's French election victory odds reached their highest level of the campaign overnight and it appears global investors are starting to panic-bid protection against the consequences for French stocks...

Oddschecker indicates Le Pen's incessant rise in popularity...

And as Bloomberg notes, as the French prepare to choose their next president, investors are paying up to hedge against swings in the nation’s shares.

The cost of three-month options on the CAC 40 Index has rallied to a five-year high relative to those on the regional Euro Stoxx 50 Index.

The first round of elections will be on April 23 and the second on May 7... one wonders how much higher this 'relative' risk can go before it spills over into something systemic... because French credit risk is now at its highest in 4 years...