French Trade Deficit Widens

France’s trade deficit widened in June from the previous month to reach its highest level since February 2017, according to seasonally adjusted data published by the customs office, as the eurozone’s second-biggest economy shows signs of slowing, Reuters reported. The June trade deficit stood at €6.25 billion ($7.24 billion), compared to 6.02 billion in May. A Reuters poll of six analysts had given an average forecast for a June deficit of €5.5 billion. The June deficit figure was the biggest since the deficit reached €6.5 billion back in February 2017. The French economy has started to display evidence of a slowdown after initially recovering following President Emmanuel Macron’s election in May 2017. The INSEE national statistics agency forecast in June that France’s economy would grow 1.7% this year as a whole, down from a decade high of 2.3% last year, due to higher oil prices and uncertainty about protectionism in global trade.