The French economy grew by 0.2% in 2003 after a boost in the last quarter when annual growth climbed to 0.5%.
The government commented that the rising growth trend put France on course for growth of 2-2.5% this year.
Growth was zero in the first quarter of last year, -0.4% in the second quarter, and plus 0.4% in the third quarter, preliminary data from the official statistics institute INSEE showed.
Meanwhile the Bank of France issued a monthly survey predicting that in the first quarter of 2004 gross domestic product would also grow by 0.5%.
