French consumer spending dropped again

French consumers spending dropped again in February, however, at a slower pace than in the previous month, mainly due to a fall in textile-leather purchases, the INSEE official statistics office said Friday. Households' expenditure on goods, which accounts for the majority of overall economic activity, dropped by 0.2% on a monthly basis in February, after a revised 0.8% drop a month earlier. On an annual basis, consumer spending tumbled 2.9% in February, faster than the 2% decline economists had forecast. Also Friday, a report showed that France's producer price index increased 1.9% on an annual basis in February, above analysts' forecasts, who called for a 1% gain. The latest data are adding to concerns that consumers and businesses are showing unwillingness to increase spending, as renewed tensions in financial markets increased concerns the Euro-region's recovery will falter.