French consumer sentiment indicator down in April

The monthly sentiment indicator of French consumers declined by three points in April from a month earlier as they showed more pessimism about their financial situation, the national statistics bureau Insee said Tuesday. At the end of April, consumers' appreciation stood at 85 points down from 88 reported in March due to a sharp fall in their appreciation of their future financial situation which shrunk by 11 points "reaching its lowest level since December 2011." Insee report also showed households sentiment about the past general economic at minus 70, down by one point while their expectation for the future gained two points from March but "the two balances remained distinctly below their long term average." Worries about a lasting depressed labor market reemerged in April with the index rose to 55 points compared to 53 in March. According to Insee, households concerns over inflation remained almost unchanged from last month, but they generally didn't think it's good time for saving. The French government targets 1 percent growth this year and to expand the figure to 2.25 percent in 2017, pledging to stem rising unemployment via thousands of sponsored jobs and a reform pact, a tough economic test to the Socialists during the year. Enditem