French PM Manuel Valls praises economy, says growth target in reach

Paris: French Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Thursday said growth in Eurozone`s second largest power was getting stronger with unemployment falling while maintaining this year`s growth target.

"We keep the target of 1.5 percent growth in 2016. For that aim, we need to record growth in the third and fourth quarters. But we feel that it`s here," Xinhua news agency quoted Valls as saying.

According to Valls, the country`s high unemployment rate, which stands currently at 9.9 percent, started lowering after government measures aimed at stimulating recruitment.

"The French economy is creating new jobs. The companies have created 140,000 jobs in recent months. This is the result of strong growth and of all adopted measures that offer more investment opportunities," he added.

Valls said the government would "continue cut income tax" in 2017 in order" to restore purchasing power.