Emmanuel Macron on Monday night decreed a “state of social and economic emergency” in France, offering a string of generous sweeteners he hopes will quell a month-long “yellow vest” revolt that has left his young presidency on the ropes.

In a pre-recorded national address broadcast across various media and no doubt the most crucial in his 18-months in office, Mr Macron said France was at a “historic juncture” and issued a mea culpa saying: “I know that I have managed to wound some of you through my comments.”

Acceding to several key demands of the “yellow vests”, the president pledged to raise the minimum wage by €100 per month from 2019 without costing a euro to the employer. Overtime will be free of tax and charges, he said, while businesses who gave end-of-year bonuses would pay no extra taxes.

Mr Macron also announced he would reverse a new levy for pensioners with incomes less than €2,000 per month. “The effort asked of them was too great and not fair,” he said.

However, many “gilets jaunes” protesters around France appeared unconvinced.

The 40-year old centrist was under intense pressure to avoid fresh damage and bloodshed after successive weekends of violent riots in Paris and other cities that have seen 4,523 arrests and already stripped France of 0.1 per cent of GDP growth, according to its finance minister.