France's unemployment rate held steady at 9.9 percent in November, dragging on the eurozone's second biggest economy and leaving economists pessimistic about the prospects for a strong French recovery in 2005. The Labour Ministry said on Friday the number of unemployed rose by 19,000, or 0.7 percent month-on-month, to 2,704,000 in November, according to International Labour Organisation criteria.

"This confirms that the economic recovery in 2004 did not lead to job creation," said Beatrice Mathieu, economist at magazine L'Expansion.

"Payrolls and employment are the main engines boosting purchasing power, and they will likely stall next year, which means that consumer spending will slow down," she added.

The unchanged rate of 9.9 percent was in line with the mid-range forecast in a Reuters poll of 20 economists.

Copyright Reuters, 2005