The French economy grew by 0.2% in the first quarter of 2005 from the figure for the previous quarter, according to the latest official data.
The figure fell short of the performance forecast by economists who had expected growth of 0.4-0.5%.
The statistics institute INSEE, which published the adjusted gross domestic product data, also revised down growth for 2004 from 2.4% to 2.1%.
However, it revised up the 2003 figure sharply to 0.9% from 0.5%, to give an adjusted outcome of 0.8%.
Many economists suspect that growth in the second quarter of this year was also weak, and that this would mean that growth for the year might scarcely reach the lower end of the range forecast by the government of 2-2.5%.
