Crisis-Hit France Eyes Gradual Deficit Reduction

France's finance minister on Wednesday forecast that the country's budget deficit would scrape below the European Union ceiling by 2017, as he unveiled his annual budget.

Michel Sapin told reporters that the deficit would be 2.8 percent of gross domestic output in 2017, just below the EU's three-percent ceiling.

France had promised Brussels it would get below the three percent limit next year but in a dramatic about-turn earlier this month, pushed back this commitment by two years.

Sapin also forecast a very gradual recovery for the crisis-hit French economy, which he said would reach a level of two percent growth only in 2018.

The economy is projected to grow by only 0.4 percent this year, recovering progressively to 1.0 percent in 2015, 1.7 percent in 2016 and 1.9 percent in 2017.

The minister said the economy would grow by two percent in 2018 and 2019.