France to have less jobless claims in 2016 if growth quickens: minister

The French government will start reversing the long-running rise in unemployment from 2016 if it honors commitments to quicken growth, Finance Minister Michel Sapin said on Thursday.

"If the expected growth takes place, the economy will create jobs significantly as from 2016. After stabilizing in 2015, unemployment is expected to decline in 2016 and 2017," Sapin told the business daily Les Echos.

"Our macroeconomic scenario is cautious and realistic. This caution is a deliberate choice that aims to give back credibility to France," he said.

Sapin maintained the government's growth forecast at 1.0 percent this year. Looking to 2016, he estimated the growth of the gross domestic product (GDP) to be 1.5 percent.

At the end of February, jobless claims rose by 0.4 percent to more than 3.494 million, dealing a new blow to President Francois Hollande's promise to stem record high joblessness via state-sponsored contracts and a cut in labor charges.

In a recent economic report, Insee, the national statistics institute, noted that high unemployment was still challenging economic recovery in the eurozone's second leading power.

The jobless rate was forecast to grow by one percentage point per quarter, which means jobless claims will stand at 10.2 percent in mainland France, the highest level in two decades, it said. Endit