Bank of France trims first-quarter French growth forecast to 0.3 percent

PARIS (Reuters) - The Bank of France on Monday trimmed its forecast for French first-quarter economic growth, estimating growth of 0.3 percent compared to 0.4 percent before, as the euro zone's second-biggest economy grapples with a regional slowdown.

Business sentiment in the manufacturing sector increased to 101 points in February, up two points on the previous month, and held steady in the services sector at 101 points, the central bank data's showed on Monday.

Bank of France governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau said last Friday that the downwards revision reflected the broader slowdown across Europe, but that the French economy was faring better than others.

(Reporting by Richard Lough; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)