French Manufacturing Confidence Falls In November

(RTTNews) - French manufacturing confidence weakened in November after strengthening in the previous month, data from the statistical office INSEE showed on Friday.

The manufacturing confidence index dropped to 98.0 in November from 100.9 in October, which was the highest since March 2024. The reading was forecast to drop to 100.

Personal production expectations eased in November, with the index falling to 14 from 19 in the previous month, which was the highest level since February 2022. By contrast, the balance on past production improved to -10 from -13.

The morale for the general production outlook in the country rose marginally to -10 from -11. The overall order books worsened to -20 from -25, with the foreign order books falling to -15 from -4.

The balance of opinion on the current level of finished-goods inventories stood at 16, down from 19 in October. The gauge indicating the expected trend in selling prices over the next three months decreased from 4 to 2.  

The opinion regarding the evolution of workforce size, both past and expected, has diminished slightly since October, the survey said.

The overall business confidence index, which comprises the responses of business leaders from sectors such as manufacturing, construction, services, retail trade, and wholesale trade, rose to 98 in November from 97 in October. Similarly, the employment climate index improved to 96 from 95.