Growth in French economic activity slowed in the third quarter, with GDP rising just 0.2% after growing 0.5% in the spring, according to data released Friday by INSEE. In line with the forecasts of the National Institute of Statistics and slightly lower than those of the Banque de France (+0.25%), growth benefited from a slight increase in the production of services (+0.5%), but below that of spring (+1%).
Decline in exports
“The production of information and communication continues to be dynamic”, details the INSEE, while “it slows down notably” in accommodation-restaurant and transport services. Household consumption, the traditional engine of the French economy, stagnated this summer, after a slight rise in the second quarter (+0.3%). In detail, energy consumption remains on track (+0.6%), unlike food consumption, which fell 1.6% in the quarter.
“The contribution of foreign trade is negative this quarter (-0.5 points, after +0.0 points in the two previous quarters)”, adds INSEE, due to lower growth in exports (+0.7%) that of imports (+2.2%). The fall in exports is especially pronounced in services (-0.4% after 3.3% in the spring).
Source: BFM TV
