The French economy grew at a better-than-expected quarterly rate of 0.3 per cent in the three months to September, expanding at its fastest pace in more than a year, national statistic office Insee says.
Analysts surveyed by dpa-AFX had forecast a third-quarter rise in gross domestic product (GDP) of 0.1 per cent.
The eurozone's second-biggest economy had shrank by 0.1 per cent during the second quarter of 2014.
Year-on-year, French GDP grew by 0.4 per cent in Q3.