France's Q1 GDP revised down to -0.1 pct

PARIS, May 29 (Xinhua) -- France's economy contracted by 0.1 percent quarter on quarter in January-March 2026, according to revised data released on Friday by the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE).

Household consumption shrank 0.2 percent after rising 0.3 percent in the previous quarter. Goods consumption dropped 0.7 percent, reversing a 0.5 percent increase in the last quarter of 2025, driven by a drop in energy consumption.

Overall, final domestic demand excluding inventories subtracted 0.2 percentage points from GDP growth in the first quarter, after contributing 0.2 percentage points in the previous quarter, according to INSEE.

Exports fell 3.5 percent in the first quarter from growing 0.9 percent in the previous quarter, mainly due to a decline in aeronautics exports. Imports continued to decrease, falling 0.9 percent after a 1.0 percent decline in the fourth quarter of 2025, it said.

Foreign trade made a strongly negative contribution to GDP growth, subtracting 0.9 percentage points after contributing 0.7 percentage points in the previous quarter, said INSEE.

Preliminary data released by INSEE on April 30 showed that France's GDP stalled in the first quarter of 2026, recording zero growth from the previous quarter. Enditem