France will not put off planned asset sales: finance minister

[January 14, 2019]  PARIS (Reuters) - The French government will not put off planned asset sales aimed at financing an innovation fund, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Monday.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire leaves following the weekly cabinet meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, December 19, 2018. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer

The French media has recently raised the possibility that plans to sell down stakes in airport operator ADP <ADP.PA> and utility Engie <ENGIE.PA> could be pushed back on account of France's "yellow vests" social unrest.

"I would like to point out the timetable for the asset sales will not change, we need to sell assets to finance breakthrough innovation and allow our country to stay in the race for new technologies," Le Maire said in a New Year's address to journalists.

(Reporting by Leigh Thomas and Myriam Rivet; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)

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