(RTTNews) - French stocks traded lower on Monday amid worries about the country's economic outlook and the prospect of a trade war after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump threatened sweeping tariffs on goods.
Investors remain concerned about how the French government will tackle a growing budget deficit.
The country's new finance minister said in a newspaper interview that the delayed 2025 budget bill will target a deficit of slightly above 5 percent in order to protect growth.
"To protect growth, the reduction of the deficit must come more through reductions in public spending than through taxation," Eric Lombard told La Tribune Dimanche, adding that any tax increases should be "very limited".
The benchmark CAC 40 was down 22 points, or 0.3 percent, at 7,334 after rallying 1 percent on Friday.
China-related LVMH, Hermes International and Kering all were down around half a percent ahead of Chinese manufacturing PMI data due on Tuesday.
