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By Tamora Vidaillet
PARIS, May 26 (Reuters) - French households spent more than expected on manufactured goods in April in a testament to still resilient consumption, but analysts warned that rising unemployment could dent the appetite to spend before long.
The bellwether consumer spending figure rose by 0.7 percent compared with March, official figures released by national statistics office INSEE showed (www.insee.fr), beating analysts' expectations for a decline of 0.1 percent.
With a sharp downward revision to the month-on-month number for March, to 0.6 percent growth from 1.1 percent previously, April's performance showed consumer trends in the euro zone's second-biggest economy largely holding steady.
Consumption, which accounts for more than half of gross domestic product in France, has managed to hold its head above water in recent months, despite the ravages of the worst economic conditions to hit the globe in decades.
Surging car sales, boosted by a government incentive scheme, lifted Tuesday's consumer spending data, which covers manufactured goods and represents almost a quarter of total consumption.
"This is stronger than expected. A lot of it is driven by soaring car sales, but there are other areas of strength in there as well," said Nick Kounis, Chief European Economist for Fortis Bank.
"This is consistent with an overall picture of consumer resilience," he said.
But economists cautioned that consumption could be enfeebled as job losses continue to mount well after the economy shows prolonged signs of stabilising.
Rising unemployment in sectors such as real estate and a likely rise in inflation from recent lows was likely to complicate the situation in the second half of the year, said Olivier Gasnier, an economist with Societe Generale.
"I am not talking about a collapse (in spending) but the best we can hope for is something that is marginally positive. We won't be seeing the 2.5-3.0 percent increases we've had for the past decade. The world has changed," he said.
Car sales jumped 3.7 percent month-on-month in April, after a 0.5 percent decline in March, while spending on household equipment rose 0.8 percent against a previous 0.9 percent fall.
Textile and leather goods grew by 0.3 percent on the month in April after climbing 3.6 percent the previous month. (Reporting by Tamora Vidaillet, Crispian Balmer and Veronique Tison; editing by Patrick Graham and Andy Bruce)