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Monday, French Finance Minster Christine Lagarde said that she would be very surprised if the economy grows in the current year.

Lagarde noted that the French economy contracted sharply in the fourth quarter of 2008 and the slowdown is expected to continue in the first quarter of 2009.

The minister also revealed that the government would be revising its outlook for 2009 from the current 0.2%-0.5% growth.

Further, the minister said the number of unemployed in December 2008 would be up by around 45,000. The European Commission had said in its interim forecast that the rate of unemployment is expected to increase to 9.8% in the current year and to 10.6% in the next year.

The second-biggest Eurozone economy escaped recession in the third quarter. However, the outlook is grim. The Bank of France has lowered its growth estimate for the fourth quarter. The bank now expects the economy to contract 1.1% in the final quarter of 2008, down from its initial estimate of 0.7% fall. The European Commission forecast the economy to contract 1.8% in 2009.