Bank of France trims second quarter growth forecast

The Bank of France cut its second quarter growth forecast on Friday as its indicator of business sentiment fell to its lowest in more than 4-1/2 years in May due to weaker consumer demand at home and slowing growth overseas. The monthly survey of business suggested the economy would grow by 0.2 percent in the second quarter, rather than the 0.3 percent predicted a month ago, the central bank said.
That would mark a sharp slowdown from first quarter growth of 0.6 percent. The barometer of business morale in French industry fell to 97, its lowest since September 2003, from a revised 100 in April, the Bank of France said. The April figure was revised from the 101 reading reported previously. "This is a realistic forecast," Dominique Barbet, senior economist at BNP Paribas said of the revised growth projection.