French Q1 GDP revised to 0.2 QQ from 0.0
Consumer spending fell unexpectedly in April
Inflation hit a record 5.8 in May

PARIS, May 31 Reuters France39;s economy shrank unexpectedly in the first quarter as consumers struggled to cope with surging inflation, official data showed on Tuesday, putting pressure on President Emmanuel Macron heading into legislative elections this month.

The INSEE statistics agency said the euro zone39;s secondbiggest economy contracted 0.2 in the three months through March from the previous quarter. It had previously estimated gross domestic product flatlined during that period.

A breakdown of the data showed consumer spending was weaker than previously estimated, falling 1.5 instead of the earlier 1.3 reading, as households reined in spending on new cars and hotels.

While an outbreak of the Omicron variant of COVID19 weighed on activity at the start of the year, a surge in consumer price inflation which INSEE said hit a record 5.8 in May has dampened household spending.

In the latest sign that inflation is unnerving consumers, INSEE said households cut their spending in April by 0.4, whereas economists polled by Reuters had forecast on average an increase of 0.8.

The French government has so far managed to keep inflation lower than any other EU country apart from Malta thanks to a 25 billion euro package consisting in large part of caps on gas and electricity price increases.

But that has not kept dwindling purchasing power from…