France's economy shrank 0.1% in the third quarter, missing forecasts for slight growth. Lower exports weighed on output, while household consumption kept rising.
The French economy contracted 0.1% in the third quarter, missing analysts' expectations for slight growth, according to official preliminary data released on Friday. Lower exports weighed on the euro zone's second-biggest economy.
Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a 0.1% increase over the third quarter, after no growth in the previous three months.
Exports drag, investment falls
Exports fell 4.5 percentage points to -1.7%, mainly because of a 9.1% decline in exports of transport equipment. Aerospace was the main negative driver, compared with 20.8% growth in the second quarter.
Investment also weakened. Gross fixed capital formation, national accounts' main measure of investment, fell 0.6% in the third quarter, extending a 0.5% decline in the second, as construction and transport equipment investments dragged on business spending.
Household consumption and energy use rise
Household consumption, however, rose 0.4% in the quarter, following a 0.2% increase in the three months prior. Statistics office Insee said purchases of electric vehicles drove a renewed rise in consumption of transport equipment.
Energy consumption also rebounded, rising 1.2% after a 2.0% fall in the previous quarter, due to increased spending on electricity, Insee said.
France has been hit by a wave of protests in the final weeks of the quarter. They began with small student demonstrations in suburban Paris in September to denounce school conditions, then broadened into a wider protest against the government's economic policies.
Source: Investing.com
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