France business confidence and surveys
France business confidence and quarterly tendency surveys from INSEE, covering multiple sectors.
| Indicator | Q3-2026 | Q2-2026 | Q1-2026 | Q4-2025 | Q3-2025 | Q2-2025 | Q1-2025 | Q4-2024 | Q3-2024 | Q2-2024 | Q1-2024 | Q4-2023 | Q3-2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industry34 | ||||||||||||||
| Spare capacity without additional recruitment (average) | 16 | 17 | 18.2 | 18.8 | 16.6 | 16.7 | 17.6 | 17.8 | 16 | 15 | 15.6 | 15.7 | 16.6 | |
| Enterprises that could produce more with additional recruitments (percentage of firms in that case) | 53.2 | 58.7 | 56.3 | 53.2 | 53.2 | 62.2 | 59.8 | 60.7 | 53.3 | 62.4 | 62.5 | 61.5 | 63.3 | |
| General export outlooks (balance of opinion) | -11.8 | -22.5 | -12.6 | -16.5 | -16.8 | -21.9 | -19.6 | -15.5 | -19.4 | -9.8 | -12.2 | -11.5 | -10.8 | |
| General wage outlooks (balance of opinion) | -53.3 | -62.1 | -63.2 | -68.6 | -63.7 | -62 | -63.9 | -55.4 | -53.6 | -46.1 | -40.3 | -43 | -38.2 | |
| Judgement of production capacity (balance of opinion) | 0 | -0.2 | 2.9 | 1.3 | 2.1 | 0.8 | 2.7 | 4.9 | 6.4 | 7.6 | 0.2 | 9.2 | 4.3 | |
| Competitive position on the market outside the European Union (balance of opinion) | -5.4 | -6.6 | -6.3 | -4.3 | -4.2 | -6.6 | -7.3 | -8.1 | -4.4 | 4.7 | 6.8 | 1.8 | -6.2 | |
| Enterprises that can not produce more with their existing resources (percentage of firms in that case) | 41.8 | 43.6 | 32.9 | 36.5 | 39.7 | 38.5 | 38.1 | 30.4 | 37.8 | 29.4 | 31.9 | 29.4 | 34 | |
| Past variation in export sale prices (average) | 1.1 | 0.2 | 0.1 | -0.6 | 0.1 | -0.1 | -0.1 | -0.8 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 0.2 | |
| Competitive position in the domestic market (balance of opinion) | -1.3 | -0.3 | -1.4 | -1 | -3.4 | -0.8 | -1.7 | -1.3 | 0.7 | 5 | 4.5 | 3.7 | -2.6 | |
| Competitive position on the European Union market (balance of opinion) | -5.5 | -2.2 | -4.2 | -4.2 | -4.9 | -3.9 | -6.2 | -5.1 | -3.2 | 6.6 | 8.8 | 4.7 | -5.2 | |
| Past variation in sale prices (average) | 1.5 | 0.4 | -0.1 | -0.3 | -0.1 | 0 | 1.2 | 0.5 | -0.1 | 0.1 | -0.2 | 0.3 | 0.2 | |
| Expected variation in sale prices (average) | 0.2 | 0.7 | 0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | -0.2 | -0.2 | 0.1 | |
| Order books in weeks of production (average) | 22.8 | 21.4 | 22.7 | 22.3 | 22.7 | 22.7 | 21.2 | 22.2 | 21 | 22.1 | 21.5 | 19.2 | 20.9 | |
| Past trend in foreign demand (balance of opinion) | 14 | 11.9 | 8.4 | 5.2 | 4.2 | 10.6 | 1.7 | 1.9 | -4.4 | 4.9 | 3 | 7.2 | 6.2 | |
| Expected trend in foreign demand (balance of opinion) | 11.8 | 7.3 | 17.1 | 13.5 | 0.5 | 6.1 | -0.5 | -5.3 | 7.6 | 9.2 | -8.5 | 7 | 0.4 | |
| Past trend in delivery times (balance of opinion) | 4.7 | 5.4 | 1.2 | 2.5 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 0.9 | -0.2 | 4.6 | 0.6 | -1.8 | -1.6 | -2.1 | |
| Enterprises encountering sourcing difficulties (percentage of firms in that case) | 22.3 | 17.3 | 15.1 | 16.6 | 15.4 | 12.9 | 15.8 | 13.3 | 13.8 | 13.7 | 14.9 | 20.4 | 23.4 | |
| Past trend in overall demand (balance of opinion) | 7.1 | 9.5 | 2.6 | 1 | 4.4 | 0.9 | -4.6 | -4.1 | -7.4 | -2.6 | -5.5 | -1.5 | 1.3 | |
| Expected trend in overall demand (balance of opinion) | 6.3 | 4.8 | 12.3 | 10.7 | 0.1 | 3.9 | -5.2 | -6.7 | 3.3 | 2.5 | -4.4 | 2.1 | -5.1 | |
| Enterprises encountering other types of difficulties (percentage of firms in that case) | 5.5 | 7.8 | 4.5 | 5 | 4.1 | 5.5 | 3.2 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 6.4 | 5.4 | 4.5 | |
| Enterprises facing insufficient demand (percentage of firms in that case) | 29.6 | 32.6 | 35.4 | 37.7 | 36.6 | 35.6 | 36.8 | 38.1 | 36.1 | 37 | 37.1 | 35.7 | 32 | |
| Enterprises encountering demand difficulties only (percentage of firms in that case) | 22.8 | 23.8 | 23.9 | 25.3 | 26.3 | 27.1 | 24.9 | 28.3 | 27.3 | 28.1 | 24.2 | 24.6 | 20.6 | |
| Past trend in export sale prices (balance of opinion) | 9.9 | 2 | -0.1 | 0 | 0.9 | 2.9 | -0.9 | -0.8 | 0.1 | 3.2 | -0.3 | 0.8 | 6.7 | |
| Enterprises encountering equipment difficulties (percentage of firms in that case) | 7.1 | 6.1 | 6.5 | 6.4 | 7.4 | 6.9 | 6.6 | 6.3 | 7.2 | 5.7 | 6.9 | 7 | 6.9 | |
| Enterprises that do not experience obstacles to activity growth (percentage of firms in that case) | 37.1 | 37.4 | 42.5 | 39.7 | 39.6 | 39.2 | 40.3 | 37.8 | 37.9 | 36.5 | 36.6 | 32.8 | 32.8 | |
| Past trend in sale prices (balance of opinion) | 12.4 | 5.8 | -1.4 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 1.7 | -0.6 | 1.1 | -4.6 | 1.9 | 10.1 | |
| Enterprises experiencing difficulties in both supply and demand (percentage of firms in that case) | 7.5 | 8.7 | 10.8 | 12.1 | 11.1 | 8.7 | 11.3 | 9.7 | 9.7 | 8.9 | 12.3 | 10.9 | 12.1 | |
| Enterprises encountering supply difficulties only (percentage of firms in that case) | 32.4 | 28.9 | 23.2 | 23.3 | 23 | 24.3 | 23.8 | 24.7 | 25.4 | 25.7 | 27.1 | 32.2 | 34.4 | |
| Utilisation rate of production capacities (average) | 81.7 | 81.3 | 80.5 | 81.7 | 81.8 | 81.6 | 80.9 | 80 | 80.8 | 80.2 | 80.9 | 81.6 | 80 | |
| Difficulties in recruiting personnel (percentage of firms in that case) | 37.1 | 35.8 | 38.6 | 37.7 | 39.3 | 40.5 | 43.5 | 45.6 | 48.3 | 51.9 | 53.1 | 57.1 | 60.5 | |
| Quarterly economic outlook survey in the manufacturing industry - Activity limited by financial constraints - Manufacturing Industry | 5.4 | 6.5 | 6 | 5.3 | 5.9 | 6.7 | 6.8 | 7.1 | 5.5 | 6 | 6.4 | 5.2 | 6.1 | |
| Quarterly economic outlook survey in the manufacturing industry - Activity limited by personnel shortages - Manufacturing Industry | 9.5 | 9.4 | 13.4 | 13.5 | 9.3 | 12.1 | 11.2 | 12.7 | 13.5 | 21.2 | 14.5 | 19.2 | 24.2 | |
| Expected trend in investment for the next three months | 17.6 | 10.5 | 2.9 | 13.6 | 10.2 | 9.1 | 1.6 | 6.2 | 7.2 | 16.5 | 5.4 | 21.1 | 20.4 | |
| Cashflow position - Raw Series | -8.6 | -10.6 | -8.3 | -10.5 | -10.6 | -7.5 | -6.3 | -15.8 | -10.7 | -8.1 | -6.9 | -8.3 | -11.1 | |
| Services27 | ||||||||||||||
| % of enterprises whose activity is restricted by other factors | 4 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 5.8 | 4.6 | 3.5 | 4.8 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 3.1 | 4.2 | 5.6 | 2.8 | |
| % of enterprises whose activity is restricted only by demand-related factors | 16.8 | 17.5 | 16.8 | 19.5 | 16.8 | 18.6 | 19.6 | 18.2 | 16.5 | 18 | 17 | 15.3 | 12 | |
| % of enterprises whose activity is restricted by insufficient demand | 25.1 | 27.1 | 23.5 | 26.4 | 27.4 | 27.1 | 26.1 | 27.7 | 27.8 | 25.1 | 24.4 | 22.9 | 18.2 | |
| % of enterprises whose activity is restricted by space and/or equipment shortages | 2.3 | 1.5 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 1 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 1.6 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 2.3 | |
| % of enterprises whose activity is restricted by financial factors | 9.1 | 10.6 | 12.1 | 13 | 14 | 12.8 | 10.1 | 14 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 12.1 | |
| % of enterprises whose activity is restricted by personnel | 9.6 | 8.8 | 8.4 | 8 | 9.5 | 9.7 | 9.6 | 9.9 | 12.5 | 14.1 | 13.7 | 18.3 | 20 | |
| % of enterprises whose activity is restricted by supply and demand-related factors | 4.8 | 7.1 | 6.3 | 7.1 | 10.6 | 8.6 | 6.2 | 9.6 | 11.3 | 7.2 | 7.2 | 7.7 | 6.1 | |
| % of enterprises whose activity is restricted only by supply-related factors | 18.4 | 14.4 | 16.8 | 17.8 | 16.5 | 16 | 16.9 | 17 | 17.9 | 20.1 | 23.1 | 24.8 | 26.9 | |
| % of enterprises having difficulties in recruiting personnel | 34.5 | 32.2 | 33.6 | 35.5 | 34.8 | 35.7 | 35.6 | 38.9 | 45.2 | 41.2 | 44.5 | 50.6 | 52.4 | |
| Cashflow position | -9.1 | -10.4 | -8.5 | -10 | -10.3 | -11.3 | -11.5 | -11.4 | -10.9 | -10.3 | -9.9 | -10.6 | -7.2 | |
| Past trend in activity abroad | 3 | -9.8 | -4.1 | -3.3 | -4.1 | 0.2 | -0.2 | -2.1 | 2.5 | -0.4 | -1.7 | -5.8 | 1.5 | |
| Expected trend in activity abroad | -11.3 | -7.7 | -7.9 | -3.7 | -6.9 | -2.8 | -2.4 | -0.6 | 0.5 | -1 | -0.8 | -5 | 2.4 | |
| % of enterprises that do not experience obstacles to activity growth | 61.8 | 61.9 | 60.2 | 55.4 | 56.3 | 56.6 | 57.5 | 55 | 54.3 | 54.5 | 53.1 | 52 | 54.8 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Others | 6.8 | 3.4 | 1.3 | 2.7 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 2.1 | 3.2 | 2.6 | 2.5 | 3 | 2.5 | 2.8 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Social contributions too high | 14.7 | 8 | 8.7 | 10.8 | 7.4 | 9.3 | 6.9 | 7.2 | 9.8 | 7.9 | 6.2 | 9.9 | 6.6 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Uncertainty about the economic situation | 15.1 | 14.3 | 15.2 | 15 | 13.5 | 14.6 | 16.8 | 14.4 | 13.7 | 13.4 | 9 | 14.4 | 10.3 | |
| Barriers to hiring - % of companies experiencing barriers to hiring | 28.7 | 21.1 | 22.3 | 25.3 | 22.3 | 23.1 | 25.7 | 25.4 | 24.9 | 26.1 | 24.2 | 30.6 | 27.7 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Legal risks associated with dismissal procedure | 3.2 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 3.3 | 2.6 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 2.4 | 3.2 | 1.5 | 2.8 | 1.4 | 3.4 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Uncertainties about the labour legislation | 4.6 | 1.7 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 2.4 | 1.5 | 1.9 | 2.1 | 4.2 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 2.3 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Dismissal costs | 7.8 | 2.3 | 2.2 | 2.9 | 2.1 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 3.3 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Unavailability of skilled labour | 15.1 | 11.4 | 12.6 | 15 | 14.6 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 14.3 | 16.8 | 18.6 | 17.4 | 24.4 | 21.2 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Recruitment costs | 5.3 | 4.2 | 5.6 | 5.2 | 5.8 | 4.9 | 5.5 | 3.9 | 5.5 | 5.1 | 3.6 | 4.7 | 3.4 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Wage level too high | 3.8 | 3.4 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 5.5 | 6.8 | 4.9 | 5.2 | 7.8 | 4.9 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Barriers linked with labor costs | 17.2 | 9.6 | 11.6 | 13.5 | 10.4 | 12.9 | 10.5 | 11.4 | 13.6 | 11.8 | 10.8 | 14.3 | 10.5 | |
| Barriers to hiring - Barriers linked with regulations | 10.7 | 3.9 | 5.4 | 5.9 | 4.1 | 3.3 | 4 | 3.9 | 5.4 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 2.7 | 4.8 | |
| Expected trend in investment for the next three months | -1.3 | -4.4 | -4.1 | -0.6 | -4.8 | -2.8 | -1.8 | -1.1 | -2.9 | -0.7 | -3.1 | 1.2 | 4.4 | |
| Monthly economic survey in services - General wage outlooks (balance of opinion) | -74.8 | -73 | -66.9 | -82.9 | -78.2 | -68.7 | -63.2 | -75.4 | -74.5 | -63.9 | -48.4 | -65.2 | -64.2 | |
| Public works20 | ||||||||||||||
| Recent business activity, global | -37 | -29 | -8 | -1 | -6 | 0 | 2 | -5 | -13 | -3 | -4 | -7 | -9 | |
| Recent business activity, of which public-sector project | -52 | -40 | -17 | -6 | -14 | -10 | -7 | -20 | -21 | -9 | -13 | -18 | -21 | |
| Recent business activity, of which private-sector project | -34 | -26 | -14 | -6 | -16 | -3 | -4 | -6 | -19 | -5 | -6 | -13 | -9 | |
| Obstacles to production increase, due to lack of personnel | 20 | 21 | 30 | 29 | 33 | 33 | 32 | 36 | 33 | 42 | 44 | 44 | 45 | |
| Opinion on order books | -49 | -38 | -34 | -22 | -23 | -18 | -16 | -20 | -17 | -20 | -15 | -19 | -16 | |
| Expected business activity, global | -43 | -38 | -25 | -14 | -13 | -11 | -9 | -13 | -10 | -8 | 4 | -13 | -16 | |
| Expected business activity, of which public-sector project | -53 | -46 | -32 | -22 | -21 | -17 | -15 | -16 | -14 | -14 | 6 | -20 | -24 | |
| Expected business activity, of which private-sector project | -33 | -30 | -24 | -17 | -17 | -13 | -13 | -18 | -9 | -11 | -6 | -9 | -16 | |
| Expected changes in employment | -19 | -13 | -5 | -6 | -4 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 2 | 13 | 7 | 8 | |
| Payment delays | 33 | 17 | 14 | 25 | 12 | 23 | 30 | 27 | 29 | 32 | 18 | 29 | 29 | |
| Opinion on order books, private-sector project | -40 | -32 | -31 | -28 | -27 | -24 | -21 | -29 | -21 | -26 | -23 | -16 | -14 | |
| Obstacles to production increase, due to lack of material | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | |
| Payment delays, private-sector project - Balance of «increase»-«decrease» responses | 27 | 2 | 9 | 17 | 6 | 18 | 13 | 14 | 25 | 27 | 10 | 17 | 14 | |
| Payment delays, public-sector project - Balance of «increase»-«decrease» responses | 33 | 7 | 17 | 23 | 10 | 22 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 32 | 14 | 31 | 27 | |
| Opinion on order books, public-sector project | -60 | -49 | -45 | -38 | -28 | -29 | -28 | -29 | -21 | -30 | -29 | -28 | -25 | |
| Obstacles to production increase | 88 | 85 | 83 | 83 | 78 | 80 | 85 | 86 | 83 | 83 | 83 | 82 | 84 | |
| Obstacles to production increase, due to a lack of demand | 56 | 53 | 49 | 50 | 37 | 45 | 44 | 44 | 35 | 35 | 35 | 36 | 29 | |
| Obstacles to production increase, due to weather conditions | 33 | 20 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 17 | 30 | 28 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 6 | |
| Obstacles to production increase, due to financial constraints | 20 | 18 | 15 | 15 | 12 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 16 | |
| Obstacles to production increase, for other reasons | 6 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
Latest reading
The latest reading is 16%, for Q3 2026. That is −1.0 pp from Q2 2026 and −0.6 pp from a year earlier. The series on this page is quarterly and runs from Q1 1991 to Q3 2026.
- Latest
- 16%
- Q3 2026
- vs previous period
- −1.0 pp
- Q2 2026
- vs a year earlier
- −0.6 pp
About this data
France business confidence and quarterly tendency surveys from INSEE, covering multiple sectors. This quarterly dataset tracks capacity utilisation, recruitment difficulties, and order books across industry, services, and public works. It includes balances of opinion on wage outlooks, demand expectations, and competitive positions. The historical series from INSEE go back to 1974.
Frequently asked questions
- What do the France quarterly business surveys measure?
- These surveys measure the economic sentiment, capacity utilisation, and operational bottlenecks of French enterprises across industry, services, and public works sectors.
- How is the balance of opinion calculated in French business surveys?
- The balance of opinion is calculated as the difference between the percentage of French business leaders reporting an increase or positive outlook and those reporting a decrease or negative outlook.
- What sectors are covered by the INSEE quarterly surveys in France?
- The quarterly surveys cover key sectors of the French economy, specifically the manufacturing industry, services, and public works.
- How far back does the France business confidence survey data go?
- The historical quarterly series compiled by INSEE for French business confidence, capacity utilisation, and order books start in 1974.
