Gross domestic product (GDP) growth in France in the third quarter should be 0.25% and be slightly lower than estimated (0.3%) at the beginning of September, according to the latest Banque de France business survey published on Monday.
“Good business resilience in the 3rd quarter”
“Early indications suggest a slight increase in GDP in October,” the note also predicts.
“This confirms the good resilience of activity in the third quarter and confirms our forecasts for 2022 (2.6%, editor’s note),” said Olivier Garnier, CEO of the Banque de France.
Growth in September was “stable” compared to August, despite a slight increase in construction activity compared to industry and services, the report noted.
“However, during the quarter that just ended in September, activity seems to have held up quite well, driven by the dynamism of certain services in the market, but also by an increase in value added in industry during the summer,” he continues. the Bank of France.
“In a context of great uncertainty, in particular regarding the cost and availability of energy”, the “companies forecast for October that activity would change little in industry and construction and would increase again in market services, but milder than in previous months”, anticipates the survey.
Finished Goods Prices Rise Again
The central bank also notes that the prices of finished products have risen again due to a strong seasonal recovery after the summer and uncertainties related to the energy crisis that “extend to all sectors”, according to Olivier Garnier.
“29% of business leaders in the manufacturing industry say they increased their selling price in September. This proportion is particularly high in the food industry (where 43% of companies say they have increased their prices), industrial chemicals and wood, paper, printing It rises to 49% for construction companies and 21% for market services”, indicates the note.
Les augmentations, which devraient légèrement se tasser en octobre dans l’industrie (23%), les services (20%) et le battiment (44%), portent tout spécialement sur les services aux particuliers (hébergement, restauration, réparation automobile) et transport.
Supply difficulties continue to move away from the “April peak”, according to Olivier Garnier, but remain high (49% in industry, 40% in construction).
On the cash side, industry continues to suffer, both large companies and SMEs, from the cost of raw materials and energy.
“This degradation especially affects certain industrial sectors such as the pharmaceutical, chemical, wood, paper, printing and electrical equipment industries,” the Banque de France continues.
Source: BFM TV
