In the first quarter of 2023, France has experienced no economic growth relative to the previous quarter, due to stagnant private consumption and a contraction in investments and government spending. However, GDP is still 0.87% higher than in the same quarter of 2022. During the last year, the strong economic rebound after the pandemic, rising energy prices, and uncertainty related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine have raised the inflation rate, now still at 5.99% relative to the previous year. Unemployment is stable at 7%. The OECD economic outlook expects annual inflation to gradually decline throughout 2023, reaching 4% towards the end of the year, and to decrease below 3% until the end of 2024. Despite the current tightening of the monetary policy by the ECB to slow down inflation, GDP in France is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 3.5% until the end of 2024. Unemployment is expected to increase to 7.3% until the end of 2023, and to decrease to 7.1% in 2024.

July 2023