PARIS (Agefi-Dow Jones) – The French economy has so far generally resisted the fifth wave of the coronavirus amplified by the Omicron variant, reveals the Banque de France’s monthly economic survey published on Tuesday.
This survey, which was conducted from December 20 to January 6 among 8,500 business leaders, indicates that activity increased in December in industry and market services and, more moderately, in construction. In industry, the production capacity utilization rate stood at 80% last month, against 79% in November, higher levels than before the health crisis.
These elements support the forecast of an increase in gross domestic product (GDP) of 6.7% over the whole of 2021, the Banque de France said in a press release.
For the current year, the central bank expects in its central scenario a growth of 3.6% for the French economy.
She warns, however, that “in the context of an epidemic outbreak, with in particular questions about the level of absenteeism which will be reached in January, the forecasts of the companies should however be considered with more caution than usual”.
Several sectors are expected to see their activity decline in January, including the automotive and computer-electronics, which still suffer from the global shortage of semiconductors. In services, accommodation – catering and events are paying the price of a degraded health context.
According to business leaders, activity is 64% of its pre-crisis level in accommodation, against 80% on average in the fourth quarter of 2021, and at 75% in catering, compared to 85% on average over the last three months of 2021.
Business services are well oriented, as is industry, where order books remain well above their long – term average, said the Banque de France.
-François Schott, Agefi-Dow Jones; 01 41 27 47 92; [email protected] ed: VLV
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January 11, 2022 14:43 ET (19:43 GMT)