Source:Insee

15 FEBRUARY 2012

GDP increased +0.2% in the last quarter of the year as the potential for better than expected rebound projections materialized  thanks to higher Gross capital formation, +0.9% increase (from +0.2%) impacted by non financial companies' renewed investments +1.4% (from -0.4%) and equally sustained miscellaneous government units +0.5% which offset households investments  (mostly in dwelling), nearly unchanged or +0.1% (from +1.4%). Household consumption stayed modest or +0.2% due to the extremely volatile Euro area debt context by year-end. Full-year 2011 growth reached +1.7% as published last November. 

In the fourth quarter, internal contribution (excluding stocks) was positively impacted +0.3% (from +0.2%) by the external trade balance +0.7% rise (from +0.1%) as exports increased +1.2% for the second consecutive quarter with sustained demand for transport equipment +7.1% gain, on the same quarterly period, while imports dipped -1.2% (from +0.7%). Stocks negative impact -0.8% (from nil) therefore had a minor effect on overall growth but nevertheless reflected an economic halt triggered by the lingering Euro area debt crisis and industrialists lack of visibility.  

The manufacturing output turned positive to +0.6% -from -0.4%) thanks to household consumption +0.5% prudent rebound  (from -0.2%) and miscellaneous government units more assertive +0.9%, equally to the previous quarter. Demand positively impacted the labor market +0.6% (from -0.1%) although modestly. Inventory repletion nevertheless contracted further to -2% (from -0.3%). 

In 2011, and compared with the previous year, imports matched exports momentum or +5% increase each but the latter moved down by over four percentage points. Gross capital formation surged +2.9% (compared with -1.4%), with non financial companies and households (mostly in dwelling)  contributing the most to fuelling growth, respectively +4.2% (from +2%) and +2.6% (from -1.4%).  Miscellaneous government units capital formation performed inversely and rose to -0.1% (compared with -9.7%). Internal demand on the same period climbed +1% (from +0.8%), lifted by stock repletion +0.9% contribution unlike external trade negative, yet mild,  impact or -0.1% (+0.1% in 2010).    
The manufacturing output moved down to +3% (from +4.3%) and again, gross capital formation of non financial companies and miscellaneous government units, respectively +10.1% (from +8.3% in 2010) and +0.4% (from -3.8%) offset weak household consumption +0.4% (from +1.3%) as household disposable income, in gross figures, stagnated or +1.3% (+0.8% in 2010). 

In the Euro area, full-year 2011 growth was +1.5% and in the EU 27, +1.6% but the fourth quarter turned negative -0.3% for each region : in Germany, GDP fell -0.2%  (from +0.6%), in Italy -0.7% (from -0.2%) and in Spain -0.3% (from nil).  In the UK, the EU 27 fifth largest economy including France, GDP declined -0.2% (from +0.6%). Out of the Union, Romania's GDP, the strongest performance in Q3 or +1.8%, contracted -0.2%, and Lithuania's -0.9% (from +1.5%). Latvia's slowed down to +0.8% (from +1.4%) and Slovakia's rose +0.9% (from +0.8%). There was no data released for Poland, eastern Europe's largest economy.