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French economy beats forecasts and grows 0.4% despite Covid curbs

Official data shows that consumer spending and business investment held up in France in the first months of 2021 despite coronavirus curbs.

La rédaction de Mediapart

This article is freely available.

The French economy grew more than expected in the first quarter, as consumer spending and business investment held up despite coronavirus curbs, official data showed on Friday, reports Yahoo! News.

The euro zone's second-biggest economy grew 0.4% in the first three months of the year from the fourth quarter, when it had shrunk 1.4%, the INSEE stats agency said.

That compared with an average forecast of 0.1% growth in a Reuters poll of 33 economists' expectations, which ranged from 1.0% to -1.3%.

The government progressively tightened curbs during the first quarter and France entered a third national lockdown at the end of March as infections spiked and pressure on hospitals increased.

Read more of this Reuters report published by Yahoo! News.