France's manufacturing industry may be in recession after unexpectedly weak industrial production figures on Wednesday cast a further shadow over the eurozone economic outlook.
Manufacturing output tumbled by 0.3 per cent in the first three months of 2005, and by 0.9 per cent in March compared with February, according to Insee, the French statistics office. France has been one of the eurozone's best performing economies but the latest data point to a marked deterioration.
