France central bank keeps Q2 growth forecast unchanged

Banque de France (BdF), France's central bank, upheld on Monday a previous 0.3-percent growth forecast for the second quarter this year.

In its economic monthly report, the bank noted "the industrial production continued to grow. The agri-food, automobile, and pharmaceutical sectors were particularly buoyant."

The capacity utilization was stable at 76.5 percent over the period, and the industrial sector would gain momentum this month, it said.

As for the services outlook, the BdF's report saw a continued increase in the sector's activities in the short term.

Last month, the business sentiment indicator in industry gained one point to 99 while that of services stood at 95, unchanged from April data.

Earlier in June, the Banque de France estimated in its biannual projections, a 1.2-percent rise in French national output this year based on a favorable global climate mainly in oil and a weak euro, in addition to expansionary monetary policy in the euro area.

The bank predicted the growth of the eurozone's second main power would stand at 1.8 percent next year and 1.9 percent in 2017. Endit