French Consumer Spending Drops Unexpectedly in March

French consumer spending dropped unexpectedly in March as households cut back on energy spending during an unseasonably mild start to the year.

Consumer spending in the eurozone's second-largest economy fell 0.4% on the month in March and 1% on the year. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a 0.4% increase on the month and a 0.8% rise on the year.

Energy spending dropped 1.8% on the month in March. Consumer spending on clothing also weighed on the overall figures, declining 1.9% on the month.

-Write to William Horobin at william.horobin@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 28, 2017 03:07 ET (07:07 GMT)