29 August 2001, 13:32  MEDEF boss says French economic slowdown is cause for concern

PARIS (AFX) - The slowdown in the French economy is "much more a cause for concern than is generally thought" according to Ernest-Antoine Seilliere, chairman of the MEDEF, the French employers' federation which is forecasting GDP growth of 2.5 pct in 2001. "We're more in the region of 1.5 pct in the last few months and it's the average between a start to the year which saw 3 pct and what we're doing now which will lead 2.5 pct for the whole year," Seilliere said in an interview on French radio station RTL. Seilliere's comments come after French prime minister Lionel Jospin forecast GDP growth for 2001 between 2.3-2.5 pct. Seilliere added that employers were looking to the government to cut public expenditure in the next budget while keeping the public deficit in check in the light of the deteriorating economic environment. "I am not under the impression the 2002 budget is being developed along those lines," said Seilliere. mc/jfr

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