PARIS (Reuters) - France cut its public deficit to 4.0 percent of economic output last year from 4.1 percent in 2013, INSEE statistics office data showed on Thursday.
The deficit was higher than initial targets in the 2014 budget but smaller than the government's latest 4.4 percent forecast.
The better-than-expected data paves the way for a 2015 deficit of about 3.8 percent of GDP, down from a previous target of 4.1 percent of GDP, Finance Minister Michel Sapin said in a statement.
France's gross public debt rose last year to 95.0 percent of gross domestic product from 92.3 in 2013.