PARIS - The Paris Olympics is giving a much-needed lift to the French economy thanks to increased consumer spending, according to a report, opens new tab from US bank card and financial transactions firm Visa.

France, the euro zone's second-biggest economy, is banking on the Games to shore up its meagre growth, with its statistics office predicting a 0.3 percentage point boost from ticket and TV rights sales and more tourism.

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Visa said its data showed that small businesses in Paris reported a 26 percent rise in sales to Visa cardholders during the first weekend of the Olympic Games compared with a year earlier.

"Our latest data shows a significant increase in consumer spending among Visa cardholders during the opening ceremony weekend," said Visa Europe CEO Charlotte Hogg.

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Visa, which is one of the corporate sponsors for the Olympics, said its US cardholders accounted for the biggest slice of foreign Olympics-related spending, with their spending 29 percent  higher than a year earlier.

The Olympics had also resulted in big increases in spending from Brazilian and Japanese Visa cardholders, it said in a report first released late on Tuesday.