Germany's Altmaier: not certain France will breach EU deficit rule

PARIS (Reuters) - Germany's Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said on Tuesday that he was not necessarily convinced France would overshoot the European Union's deficit limit of 3 percent of gross domestic product next year.

"There is room to manoeuvre," Altmaier told French TV station C News.

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told Les Echos newspaper earlier this week that the country's budget deficit was likely to breach the European Union's limit of 3 percent of GDP next year and stand at around 3.2 percent.

Altmaier added he was confident Germany could reach a deal with France regarding a tax on digital giants such as Facebook, Apple and Google by the summer.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Sarah White)