France's 2024 Budget Deficit Reaches 5.8%, Lower than Expected

France's public sector budget deficit for 2024 has widened to 5.8% of GDP, an increase from 5.4% in 2023, according to data from the statistics agency INSEE. However, this figure is an improvement over the government's previous estimate of 6.0%. The rise in the deficit has been attributed to higher government spending and lower-than-expected tax revenues, prompting multiple revisions to deficit projections. The government aims to reduce the deficit to 5.4% this year as part of its strategy to align with the European Union's ceiling of 3% by 2029. Additionally, public debt has increased to 113.0% of GDP, surpassing last year's 109.8% and the government's forecast of 112.7% for 2024.