France's economy recorded zero growth in the first quarter of this year due to weak domestic demand and a sharply negative contribution from foreign trade, the national statistics agency INSEE said Thursday.
The first estimation of first quarter gross domestic product (GDP) shows the impact of the war in the Middle East, which began on February 28.
As little as two weeks ago, the French central bank estimated that the country's economy could grow by as much as 0.3 percent in January through March, while INSEE had cut its forecast from 0.3 percent to 0.2 percent growth at the end of March.
Households scaled back spending, making a -0.1 percentage point contribution to growth in the first quarter after having provided a 0.4 percent boost in the final quarter of 2025.
Foreign trade made a negative 0.7 percentage point contribution to growth in the quarter.
