France’s statistics agency INSEE confirmed that gross domestic product expanded 0.3% in the second quarter, repeating the preliminary reading and improving on the 0.1% pace recorded at the start of the year. The detailed release said the acceleration was helped by a rebound in exports and firmer household spending, partially offset by a small drop in business investment. Separate flash data show price pressures in the euro-area’s second-largest economy continuing to moderate. The harmonised index of consumer prices rose 0.8% from a year earlier in August, slipping further below the European Central Bank’s 2% target and coming in just under market expectations of 0.9%. On France’s national measure, inflation slowed to 0.9%, with INSEE citing a cooling in services costs while food prices maintained a 1.6% increase. Elsewhere in the bloc, Spain’s National Statistics Institute said headline consumer-price growth held steady at 2.7% in August, while core inflation edged up to 2.4%. The contrast underlines the diverging inflation paths within the euro zone as policymakers weigh the timing of potential rate cuts.