France renewed its call for the euro to be used to foster growth, a thinly veiled protest at export-crimping gains which saw the single currency scale new all-time highs against the yen on Tuesday.
Farms Minister Michel Barnier was the latest to join the chorus of French voices calling for the euro to be deployed in the service of economic activity - a drive that has been led by President Nicolas Sarkozy. Barnier, a former European commissioner, told LCI television that the accord on simplifying the way the European Union works would allow the bloc to look at critical policy issues. These included "how to ensure that the euro is not just a shield but a tool for growth", he said.
He made his comments minutes after the euro scaled record highs above 167 yen, bringing its gains so far this year to about 6.5 percent. Prime Minister Francois Fillon weighed in later in the day. "It is undeniable that the (European) Union's monetary policy is not as reactive as we would like, that the weakness of the dollar and the yuan does not help our exporters," Fillon said in an inaugural speech to the lower house of parliament.
The head of Germany's BDI industry association said on Tuesday the euro's current exchange rate against the dollar, about $1.36 , was not a problem but that exchange rates of $1.40 or above would trigger concern. However, French exporters say they have already been feeling the pain of the euro's gains.
The chief executive of automaker PSA Peugeot Citroen, Christian Streiff, made the point as recently as Saturday when he estimated the single currency was about 30 percent overvalued against the Japanese yen.
Such complaints have found a sympathetic ear from Sarkozy, who late on Monday repeated his view that the euro was overvalued and renewed his call for the currency to be used to promote jobs and growth in Europe. This view has encouraged Paris to push for what it terms improved economic governance in the eurozone.
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