Germany should take advantage of stronger economic growth to invest more and France needs fiscal reform so it can meet its deficit reduction targets by a 2017 deadline, the European Commission said on Wednesday.

In annual economic policy recommendations to all European Union countries except Greece and Cyprus, which are in bailout programmes, the EU executive arm also said Italy was justified in consolidating public finances more slowly to support reforms.

Germany, the eurozone's biggest economy, expects to have a structural budget surplus of 0.25 to 0.75 percent of GDP until 2019. Public debt is forecast to decline to 61.5 percent of GDP by 2019.