- Ewald Nowotny, ECB policy maker
French President Francois Hollande said France's economy would expand 1.1% this year, compared with the previous government forecast of 1%. Yet, the pace of growth would be insufficient to have a significant effect on the nation's unemployment rate. Moreover, the growth would be slower compared with other countries in the Euro bloc, due to the construction sector, where both housing and public works stalled. Hollande added the government will also reform labour laws to make the labour market more flexible. At the same time, the official statistics agency INSEE downgraded its economic outlook this year to 1.1% from its previous estimate of 1.2%. For the third quarter INSEE expected France's economic output to grow 0.2% and 0.4% in the final three months of the year. In late September, Moody's Investors Service revised downwards the country's government bond ratings by one notch to Aa2 from Aa1. The outlook on the ratings remained stable.
Meanwhile, European Central Bank policy maker Ewald Nowotny said that the Euro zone needs additional stimulus, including looser fiscal policy and structural reforms to support economic growth.
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