French private sector activity decreases

French private sector business activity fell to a four-year low in January, a provisional indicator released Thursday by the IHS Markit group showed, amid protracted anti-government "yellow vest" protests.

A reading of the sector as a whole fell to an indexed 47.9 points from 48.7 the previous month, an IHS statement said, marking the biggest contraction in activity in more than four years.

Any figure below 50 indicates a decline in business activity, and January was hit in particular by a drop in the service sector amid recurrent protests by the "yellow vest" movement against government reforms and the globalised French economy.

It was the latest sign that economic clouds have gathered over France, where growth has slowed markedly in recent months and is expected to reach just 1.5 per cent for 2018 according to the central bank, after 2.2 per cent in 2017.

The decline partly reflects the toll taken by the protests, which saw dozens of stores looted in Paris and other cities and forced others to board up their windows during holiday shopping weekends.