France: Business confidence stabilizes through Q1
In March, the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies’ (INSEE) business-climate indicator for the manufacturing sector was roughly stable from a month earlier at 102 points (February: 103 points). As a result, the indicator remained above its 100-point long-run average.
March’s print reflected firms’ diminished views on past activity, which offset roughly stable opinions on employment and greatly improved assessments of short-term output—at all levels. That said, firms grew more downbeat on current export orders in light of the cooling global economy.