France’s consumer confidence remained unchanged in May but continued to trail significantly below its historical average, according to the latest monthly survey from the statistical office INSEE, published Wednesday.
The consumer sentiment index stood at 90.0 in May, matching its April level. Economists, however, had anticipated a slight uptick to 91.
Despite this, the index is still well beneath its long-term benchmark of 100.
The measure of consumers’ expectations regarding their financial situation dropped to -14 in May, down from -12 in April. Conversely, the sub-index reflecting the past financial situation of households improved marginally, rising to -24 from -25.
The index indicating whether households believe it is a good time to make significant purchases showed a bit of resilience, inching up by one point to -32.
Consumer pessimism about the overall future economic situation lessened slightly, with the corresponding index increasing to -46 from -48. Similarly, the indicator for the past financial situation edged up to -72 from -73.
Households’ outlook on their future savings potential improved in May, as evidenced by the index climbing from 11 to 12.
Concerns about unemployment grew, with the corresponding measure rising to 27 from 22 in May.
The proportion of households expecting prices to surge over the next twelve months saw a slight increase, with the related index moving to -50 from -51.
