WATCH: Barack Obama backs Emmanuel Macron in French election

"The French election is very important to the future of France and the values that we care so much about.”

Former US president Barack Obama has weighed in on the French presidential election, backing Emmanuel Macron is a last-minute intervention.

Macron, a 39-year-old former investment banker and economy minister, is banking on the promise to reform France through radical pro-business measures and pro-European policies.