FRANCE

摘要

Despite some stabilisation in recent forward-looking sentiment indicators, a recovery is still some way off and the GDP outlook remains clouded with uncertainty. The biggest stumbling block is the labour market. With the unemployment rate having soared from a low of 7.2% in Q1 2008 to 8.7% in the same period one year later, there is little - if any - sign that the deterioration in job fundamentals has ebbed. If anything, job cuts persist as firms slash costs in the current weak-demand climate.