France’s overall business climate fell to 94 in April 2026, the lowest level since July 2024, from 97 in March, moving further below its long-term average of 100. The deterioration was driven by a sharp drop in retail trade and motor vehicle confidence, where the climate indicator plunged to 94 from 99, pressured by weaker ordering intentions and a softer business outlook. Services sentiment also worsened, with the sector gauge slipping to 94 from 96, marking its lowest level since April 2015 outside the pandemic period and remaining below its long-run norm for an eighteenth straight month. Meanwhile, the business climate in building construction was unchanged at 96, still below average, as weaker expectations for future activity offset a modest rebound in views on past activity. In contrast, manufacturing provided a small offset, with confidence edging up to 100 from 99, returning to its long-term average on firmer assessments of past production and order books. source: INSEE, France

Business Climate Indicator in France decreased to 94 points in April from 97 points in March of 2026. Business Climate Indicator in France averaged 100.04 points from 1977 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 121.00 points in December of 1999 and a record low of 46.00 points in April of 2020. This page provides - France Business Climate Composite Indicator- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. France Business Climate Composite Indicator - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on May of 2026.

Business Climate Indicator in France decreased to 94 points in April from 97 points in March of 2026. Business Climate Indicator in France is expected to be 95.00 points by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the France Business Climate Composite Indicator is projected to trend around 99.00 points in 2027 and 101.00 points in 2028, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2026-03-26 07:45 AM
Business Climate Indicator
Mar 97 97 94
2026-04-23 06:45 AM
Business Climate Indicator
Apr 94 97 96 95
2026-05-22 06:45 AM
Business Climate Indicator
May


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Business Climate Indicator 94.00 97.00 points Apr 2026
Business Confidence 100.20 99.40 points Apr 2026
Capacity Utilization 76.95 76.61 percent Mar 2026
Changes in Inventories 148.00 -5334.00 EUR Million Mar 2026
Industrial Production -0.30 1.90 percent Feb 2026
Industrial Production MoM -0.70 0.20 percent Feb 2026
Manufacturing Production 0.80 2.10 percent Feb 2026
Mining Production -7.70 0.20 percent Feb 2026
New Orders -19.00 -17.00 points Mar 2026


France Business Climate Composite Indicator
In France, the Business Climate Composite Indicator summarizes the information provided by the surveys in manufacturing, services, trade (retail and wholesale), and construction. The business climate is built from 26 balances of opinion from these surveys.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
94.00 97.00 121.00 46.00 1977 - 2026 points Monthly
NSA

News Stream
France Business Climate Deteriorates in April
France’s overall business climate fell to 94 in April 2026, the lowest level since July 2024, from 97 in March, moving further below its long-term average of 100. The deterioration was driven by a sharp drop in retail trade and motor vehicle confidence, where the climate indicator plunged to 94 from 99, pressured by weaker ordering intentions and a softer business outlook. Services sentiment also worsened, with the sector gauge slipping to 94 from 96, marking its lowest level since April 2015 outside the pandemic period and remaining below its long-run norm for an eighteenth straight month. Meanwhile, the business climate in building construction was unchanged at 96, still below average, as weaker expectations for future activity offset a modest rebound in views on past activity. In contrast, manufacturing provided a small offset, with confidence edging up to 100 from 99, returning to its long-term average on firmer assessments of past production and order books.
2026-04-23
France Business Climate Stable in March
France’s overall business climate held at 97 in March 2026, remaining below its long-term average of 100. Manufacturing confidence fell to 99 from 102 in February, returning below the long-term norm, as balances for past production and order books, both overall and foreign, weakened, especially in the “other transport equipment” segment. Services sentiment stayed subdued at 96, with corporate services showing particularly gloomy conditions. The business climate in building construction edged up slightly to 97 (vs 96), supported by stable past activity and marginally improved order books, but remained under its long-term average. Retail trade and motor vehicle repair rebounded modestly to 99 (vs 98), driven by stronger ordering intentions. Meanwhile, the employment climate rose to 94 from 93, still below average, mainly due to improved expectations for workforce size in services, including temporary work agencies.
2026-03-26
France Business Climate Weakens in February
France’s overall business climate indicator fell to 97 in February 2026, the lowest level since late October, from 99 in January, moving further below its long-term average of 100. Manufacturing confidence dropped to 102 from 105, returning to its December level but remaining above average, as balances for past and expected production and overall order books deteriorated. Services sentiment also weakened, with the indicator falling to 95 from 98, as all subsectors contributed to the decline. Retail trade and motor vehicle repair edged down to 98 from 99, drifting further below average. Meanwhile, the business climate in building construction was unchanged at 97, remaining below its long-term norm. The employment climate deteriorated further, slipping to 93 from 94 and staying well below average, largely due to weaker hiring expectations in services excluding temporary work agencies.
2026-02-24