"Today it's better because we are at a euro-dollar rate of 1.29 to 1.30, but it is still too much," he told workers at a plant of plane-maker Airbus in southwestern France.

"I know perfectly well that 0.1 points more on the euro is a billion in costs for the company," he said.

Sarkozy said that as the current president of the Group of 20 and Group of 8 powers, France wants to reform currency and commodity markets and world governance.

He also vowed that he would not allow the euro to collapse.