<!–^~^65|right|^~^–>France is the world’s second largest exporter of services and farm products and fourth largest exporter of goods (principally durables); it had a trade surplus of 104.5 billion francs ($20.9 billion) in 1995. French exports stood at 1,427 billion francs ($285.4 billion) in 1995, 22% of GDP. Imports amounted to 1,322 billion francs ($264.4 billion). These figures show a sharp increase in the surplus in durable goods (over 58 billion francs, $11.6 billion), a 20 billion-franc surplus ($4 billion) in farm products, a surplus of 31 billion francs ($6.2 billion) in agri-foodstuffs, a declining energy bill and a rise of 19% in electricity exports. France’s European Union partners absorb 64% of its trade. The country had a trade surplus of 27 billion francs ($5.4 billion) with the EU in 1995. France’s main customers are Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Belgium and Spain, along with the United States.

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Introduction

Agriculture

Industry

Research & Development

Transportation

Services

<!–^~^66|right|^~^–>SERVICE SECTOR

Tourism
Around 60.5 million foreign tourists visit France each year. France has 17.3 million tourist beds, including 1.2 million in over 40,000 hotels and some 16.1 million in rural gites, camp sites, youth hostels, etc.. This activity generates 900,000 jobs. The trade surplus in this sector rose to 57 billion francs in 1995 ($11.4 billion).

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Introduction

Agriculture

Industry

Research & Development

Transportation

Foreign Trade

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Rail network On 1 January 1996, the SNCF (National Railroad Company) was responsible for 31,940 km of track. France holds the world speed record (515 km/h) with its high-speed train (TGV), which runs on 1,268 kilometres of special track. Annual capacity: 55.5 billion passenger/km (first in Europe excluding the CIS) and 48.9 billion tonnes of freight/km (second in Europe excluding the CIS).

Merchant fleet Annually 208 ships (total tonnage of 4.3 million) transport 91.5 million tonnes of freight. France’s fleet ranks 25th in the world in tonnage. Marseille is the largest port in France and on the Mediterranean and the third largest in Europe.

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Introduction

Agriculture

Industry

Research & Development

Services

Foreign Trade

<!–^~^70|right|^~^–>National R & D expenditure amounts to 190 billion francs ($38 billion) i.e. 2.5% of GDP.

France ranks fourth among OECD countries for research, after Japan, Germany and the United States.

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Introduction

Agriculture

Industry

Transportation

Services

Foreign Trade

<!–^~^69|right|^~^–>Leading industrial sectors in France :

• Construction and civil engineering. Annual production : 797 billion francs ($159.4 billion). Four French groups (Bouygues, SGE, Eiffage and GTM-Entrepose) rank among the top ten in European construction, with an annual turnover of 158 billion francs ($31.6 billion).

• Agri-foodstuffs. Annual turnover: 637 billion francs ($127.8 billion). Leading sectors: meat and dairy production, cereals, confectionery, soft and alcoholic beverages. Leading exporter and second-ranked producer in the EU.

• Chemicals, rubber and plastics. Annual turnover: 348 billion francs ($69.6 billion), fourth world exporter.

• Parachemicals, pharmaceuticals. Annual turnover: 234 billion francs ($46.8 billion), third-ranked world exporter.

• Automobile industry. France is the world’s third largest exporter of cars. Renault and PSA (Peugeot-CitroÃŽn) are respectively the tenth and 12th largest groups in the automobile sector worldwide. Some 3,558,400 vehicles were produced in 1994.

• Metallurgy, metals processing. Annual turnover: 251 billion francs ($50.2 billion)

• Telecommunications and postal services. Annual turnover: 205 billion francs ($41 billion). The French telephone network, over 95% digitized, is one of the most modern in the world.

• Shipbuilding, aircraft and railway industries. Annual turnover: 116 billion francs ($23.2 billion); 44.5% of production is exported.

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Introduction

Agriculture

Research & Development

Transportation

Services

Foreign Trade

Principal agricultural products in France:

• Sugar beet: 1st in the EU, 2nd in the world (29 million tonnes)
• Wine: 2nd in the world, 2nd in the EU (5.3 million tonnes)
• Milk: 2nd in the EU, 5th in the world (23.3 million tonnes)
• Beef and veal: 1st in the EU, 6th in the world (1,815,000 tonnes)
• Cereals: 1st in the EU (53.4 million tonnes, including 30 million tonnes of soft wheat, 8th in the world, and 12.5 million tonnes of grain maize)
• Oilseeds: 1st in the EU (4.1 million tonnes)

Forests
Woods and forests cover some 15 million hectares, 26% of France’s total area, placing France third in the EU countries in terms of forest area, behind Sweden and Finland. Forest area in France has increased by 35% since 1945 and continues to grow by about 30,000 hectares each year. Most trees are deciduous (2/3), while the remaining third consists of conifers. The National Forestry Office (Office national des ForÍts -ONF) is responsible for managing national forests (1,750,000 hectares) and those belonging to local authorities (2,850,000 hectares). The remaining 10,500,000 hectares belong to some 3,800,000 private owners. Forests in France are a source of biological and scenic wealth, a place for excursions and relaxation; they also yield an annual harvest of 55 million cubic metres of timber.

For more information, check out the Agriculture Department

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Introduction

Industry

Research & Development

Transportation

Services

Foreign Trade

Through the years, France’s stamp on western civilization has left an indelible mark in many domains and French savoir-faire remains a reference in the arts, politics, gastronomy, fashion and science.

Since World War II, French society has undergone great transformations. Whereas one person in 3 used to work in farming, today this ratio stands at 1 in 16. Concurently, religious practice (mostly Catholic) declined almost at the same rate.

This new age ushered in such changes in social habits as the wider acceptance of the practice of unmarried couples living together and the legalization of abortion. After the students took to the streets in infamous May 1968, conditions for women have tremendously improved and many social structures became less constructing for everyone.

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Social Customs

Modern Politics

Modern Life

France in Figures