French manufacturing expanded in February, beating flash forecast, PMI shows

try{ var _=i o; . if(!_||_&&typeof _==="object"&&_.expiry Oil prices surge after U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran; crude around $80/bbl likely Gold prices jump 2% amid widening US-Israel conflict with Iran Asia stocks slide as US-Iran strikes batter risk appetite Middle East tensions rise as Iran promises retaliation (South Africa Philippines Nigeria) French manufacturing expanded in February, beating flash forecast, PMI shows By Reuters Economic Indicators Published 03/02/2026, 03:57 AM Updated 03/02/2026, 04:07 AM French manufacturing expanded in February, beating flash forecast, PMI shows 0 By Sudip Kar-Gupta PARIS, March 2 - France’s manufacturing sector expanded in February, slightly beating initial estimates, helped by solid demand in the cars and aerospace sectors, S&P Global reported on Monday. The HCOB final France Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index for February slipped to 50.1 points from a 43-month high of 51.2 in January. Nevertheless, it remained above the 50.0 points level indicating growth, and the final February manufacturing PMI beat the flash PMI reading of 49.9 points. S&P Global said foreign orders in the manufacturing sector had fallen, although factory output had increased and manufacturing companies had a more confident outlook. "As long as incoming orders in France’s manufacturing sector remain in decline, it is premature to declare the downturn in the sector as over. That said, the index for order books is only marginally below the expansion threshold, and significantly better than the average level recorded from 2023 to 2025," said Hamburg Commercial Bank AG junior economist Jonas Feldhusen. "Confidence among manufacturers appears to be improving. This is partly driven by expectations of rising demand from the public sector," he added.