France Slides Back Into Recession

Economy contracted 0.2% in the first quarter of the year

France has entered its second recession in four years after the economy shrank by 0.2% in the first quarter of the year, official figures show.

Its economy shrank by the same amount in the last quarter of 2012. A recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

France has record unemployment and low business and consumer confidence.

Separate figures showed that the recession across the 17-nation eurozone has continued into a sixth quarter.