EU disciplines Germany over deficit, warns France

BELGIUM - The European Commission publicly censured Germany and France over their budgets on Wednesday, saying Berlin would exceed EU deficit limits this year and Paris risked following suit next year.

But the euro zone's two biggest economies face an uphill battle to rein in spending as the Commission said recovery would be delayed by a year, the jobless rate will rise slightly, and the threat of war with Iraq poses downside economic risks, Reuters reported.

EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner