Do foreign investors have a good image of France? As every year for ten years, the French Foreign Trade Councilors (CCE), in association with Eurogroup Consulting, tried to measure the level of attractiveness of France by interviewing 1,800 businessmen and women present in 152 countries.
With an average score of 62.7/100 in 2023, France’s Territorial Attractiveness Index (IAT) is down 1.2 points compared to last year. This fall is mainly explained by concerns about the supply and cost of energy. In fact, “by neutralizing the impact of the energy crisis”, France’s score would be 64.2/100, the highest since the creation of the index, underlines the CCE.
France recognized for its “cultural environment” and its infrastructures
Obtained by grouping the answers of the respondents in a dozen criteria (taxation, labor costs, quality of life and infrastructure, etc.), the score obtained by France remains honorable and places the country in third position, behind Germany and the Netherlands.
“This relatively high level of the Index is confirmed in the analysis of the “sentiments” of the respondents”, greet the Foreign Trade Advisors of France. In fact, 80% say they have a “good” (9%) or “quite good” (71%) opinion of the country’s attractions, compared to 17% who have a “quite bad” opinion and 3% ” bad”.
France stands out mainly for its “cultural environment” (92/100, +1.3 points), the “quality of its infrastructures” (86.5/100, -0.8) and its “quality of life” (87, 8/100, +0.8) . On the contrary, it suffers in terms of “labour flexibility and social climate” (28.3/100, -1.5), “administrative and regulatory burdens” (26.7/100, -0.3) and “taxation” (27.4/100, +0.2). The French score for energy supply and energy costs also posted a record drop (-17.9) to 53.7/100.
Administrative simplification, tax cuts… Investor expectations
According to the majority of respondents, France should act on its fiscal policy to improve its attractiveness. 82% of those surveyed believe that reducing taxes on production is a good measure. But it is “the simplification of procedures for the creation of companies that raises the most expectations this year” with about 85% of favorable opinions.
The measures of the France 2030 plan are also appreciated by almost three quarters of those surveyed. By contrast, only 43% of them believe that unemployment insurance and pension reforms will have a positive impact on France’s attractiveness.
Source: BFM TV
