Live news: France’s economy expands at fastest rate for 52 years
France’s economy ended 2021 on a high, outstripping expectations with growth of 0.7 per cent in the final three months of the year and helping the country to achieve its fastest expansion for 52 years.
The national statistics office said average growth in 2021 was 7 per cent, its fastest rate since the high point of “les 30 glorieuses” in 1969, as the economy rebounded sharply from its 8 per cent contraction in 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic first hit.
The eurozone’s second-largest economy returned to its pre-pandemic level of gross domestic product in the third quarter, it said, outstripping most major European countries.
France has been boosted by a sharp rebound in consumer spending after coronavirus restrictions were eased last year. It has benefited from its lower exposure to supply chain bottlenecks that hit manufacturing in neighbouring Germany.
In the fourth quarter, the economy was powered by a 0.4 per cent rise in…
