French household spending falls flat in September

French consumers spent less in September on food and energy products, although outlays on automobiles picked up significantly.

Spending by households was flat over the month after edging higher in August by one tenth and rose by 2.6% year-on-year, according to INSEE.

Economists had penciled in an increase of 0.2% month-on-month.

Consumption of food products fell by 0.6% over the month and that of energy products by 0.1%.