France 'to see GDP growth of 2% in 2004'

The French economy is expected to grow by 2% this year with growth of 1.3% clocked up by end of the second quarter, the Bank of France said today.

The Central bank's survey of business leaders shows that France saw its economy grow 0.5% in the first quarter, unchanged from previous forecasts, and that it expects GDP to also grow by 0.5% in the second quarter.

Growth for the first six months of the year is expected to stand at 1.3%, it added.

In retail trade, after a marked decline in February, retail activity stabilised in March, posting year-on-year growth.

In the three-month period, industrial activity firmed significantly, except in the automotive industry, while the flow of new orders increased in all sectors, and was strong abroad, the survey showed.

Separately, the business sentiment indicator stood at 102 in March compared with 101 in February and 93 a year earlier, it said.