French caretaker Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Wednesday a deal could eventually be reached on a 2026 budget despite the country's political crisis, striking a cautiously optimistic tone as he held talks with various parties.

The resignation of another French prime minister deepens the country's political crisis and draws a call from far-right leader Marine Le Pen for national elections.

France’s newly re-appointed Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu acknowledged that he might be able to stay in his job long given the country's deep political divides.

France's outgoing Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is hopeful that the political crisis gripping the country can be resolved without new elections. Lecornu said on Wednesday that he sees a common desire among the country's parties to pass a budget by the end of the year: "And this desire naturally creates momentum and a rapprochement that makes the prospect of dissolving parliament seem very remote.

Sébastien Lecornu has been given until Wednesday evening to come up with a plan for the "stability of the country".

While France has a long history of hefty overspending, economists say political turmoil – which has stalled policymaking – is bringing the country’s debt problem to a head.

France's centre-right Les Republicains party was on course to maintain its majority in the Senate after Sunday's vote, while President Emmanuel Macron's centrist party avoided mishap 18 months away from a general election.