Abstract: Within the theoretical framework of Autosegmental-Metrical (AM) phonology, this study compares the reading-aloud productions of Chinese learners of French and native French speakers to investigate the acquisition of French pitch accent by Mandarin speakers. It focuses on the phonetic realization of the late rise (the pitch accent) within the underlying tonal pattern /LHiLH*/ of the accentual phrase. The results show that the learners’ phonetic realization of French pitch accent differs from that of native speakers. Traces of Mandarin lexical tone are observed in the learners’ productions, and these traces become more salient as the learners’ proficiency decreases. The realization of pitch accent is also influenced by the number of syllables in the accentual phrase as well as by its position or nature. Additionally, this study finds that compared with native speakers, the learners exhibit a narrower F0 range and a more limited ability to realize intonational prominence through F0.