France remains in favour of a rate cut by the European Central Bank to give a shot in the arm to an economy that is suffering from the fall-out of the global credit crisis, a senior presidential advisor said on Sunday.
"France has never hidden that a rate cut, even small, could be a sign, a sign that could give confidence, a sign that invites to invest again, to take a wager on the future," Claude Gueant, secretary-general of the Elysee, told Europe 1 radio. "If such a decision were taken, France would be satisfied," he added.
On Thursday, the ECB maintained its key rate at 4.25 percent but opened the door to a its first rate cut in more than five years. ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet participated in a summit of French, Italian, German and British leaders in the Elysee palace on Saturday.