By Don Nico Forbes and Ed Frankl
France's economy picked up in the second quarter, helped by a rebound in household spending and robust exports, overcoming some of the uncertainty about the course and consequences of the conflict in the Middle East.
Gross domestic product in the eurozone's second-largest economy rose 0.2% in the three months through June, France's statistics agency said Thursday. That compares with a 0.1% contraction in the first quarter and came in above the 0.1% growth expected in a consensus of economists polled by The Wall Street Journal.
Despite continued supply-chain disruptions and higher energy prices, driven by the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran, the economy has proved more resilient than many economists had feared following the outbreak of conflict earlier this year.
Still, the energy crisis comes as the latest setback for the economy, which has struggled to gain momentum in recent years. Repeated economic shocks, from Russia's invasion of Ukraine to President Trump's tariff war, have left consumer sentiment near historic lows.
