French economy grinds to a halt

A combination of austerity, excessive debts, and political indecisiveness have been hampering economic growth in the European Union.  The weaker members such as Greece, Portugal, Spain, etc. have been the primary victims but even the larger economies of France and Germany are beginning to feel the pain.   The solution will be liquidity to ∞ for the western world.

Headline: French economy grinds to a halt

PARIS (Reuters) - France's economy posted no growth in the first quarter and there are no sign of a strong recovery in activity in the coming months, according to a Bank of France survey on Tuesday. In its monthly report, the Bank of France indicated that the euro zone's second largest economy avoided a recession, after it grew by 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter. However, it said that activity was likely to remain stable in the coming months, a picture confirmed by soft manufacturing data on Tuesday from the INSEE national statistics office. The Bank of France said that its business sentiment indicator for industry was unchanged in March at 95, a 3-month low it reached in February. It noted that industrial activity improved, with rises in pharmaceuticals and chemicals, transport equipment and hi-tech goods. "Forecasts suggest that activity will remain stable in the short term," the bank said. Economists said that with fiscal tightening across Europe weighing on external demand for French goods and with rising domestic unemployment likely to peak next year above 10 percent, it was no surprise the growth outlook was weak.

Source: finance.yahoo.com

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