France to Curb Spending as Government Sees Slippage From Plans

France’s government said it will need to cut spending by an extra €5 billion ($5.9 billion) this year to meet its deficit reduction target after seeing some slippage from the initial budget plan.

“The additional effort decided today reflects a clear determination to act without delay to meet our targets for controlling public accounts and debt, with a view to bringing our deficit below 3% by 2029,” Finance Minister Eric Lombard said in a statement Thursday.