PARIS (Reuters) – France’s preliminary third quarter gross domestic product (GDP) rose 3% to beat market forecasts, the national statistics office said, as a pick-up in consumer spending and exports boosted the euro zone’s second-biggest economy.
Third-quarter growth of 3% was above a forecast of 2.1% in a Reuters poll of 24 analysts.
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told France Info radio the figure was an “exceptional result” that showed the economy was heading in the right direction.
The INSEE national statistics agency added that the third-quarter growth meant France’s economy was close to getting back to its level before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
INSEE has forecast the economy to grow 6.25% for 2021.
(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Sam Holmes and Clarence Fernandez)
