French consumer spending jumped much more sharply than expected in September as government incentives kept car sales buoyant and sales of clothing and durable goods rebounded, data on Friday showed.
National statistics office INSEE said consumer spending on manufactured goods rose by 2.3 per cent in September, well above expectations for a 0.5 per cent rise, following an unrevised 1 per cent decline in August.
Consumer spending in the third quarter as a whole was nonetheless down 0.2 per cent from the second quarter of the year, the data showed.
Sales of automobiles, which have been supported by government programmes to encourage motorists to trade in old vehicles for newer more environmentally friendly models, rose by 10.2 per cent.
Overall sales of durable goods were up 4.8 percent after a 0.9 per cent fall the previous month, while textile and leathergoods rose 2.9 per cent following a 3.6 per cent fall in the previous month.
Reuters