Foreign economic activity of France in modern conditions. Economic cooperation of France with other subjects of the world economy

Territory of France

The largest state in Western Europe with a total area of ​​545 thousand square meters. km. Has possessions in the Caribbean:

Martinique and Guadeloupe, as well as Reunion Island (east of Madagascar). The area, taking into account these territories, is 640.05 thousand square meters. km. The western and northern regions of France are plains, in the center and east - medium-low mountains, in the southeast - the Alps, on southwest— Pyrenees.

Population of France

The population without overseas departments is 62 million people (2008), with dependent territories - 64.05 million people. France is characterized by: high birth rate and high life expectancy. According to IN SEE experts, according to these indicators, France may become a leader among other countries of the European Union. The average life expectancy is 80.98 years (men - 77.79 years, women - 84.33 years) (as of 2009). France is a country of mass immigration, especially the number of emigrants from the former French colonies in Africa. The French make up about 90% of the total population, but the outlying areas are inhabited by ethnic groups that differ in language and culture (in particular, the Bretons - 1.5 million people). The predominant religion is Catholicism (84% of the population).

State structure of France

A presidential republic, the head of state and executive power is the president, who is elected for a term of five years. In consultation with Parliament, he appoints the Prime Minister and members of the government. Parliament consists of two chambers: the National Assembly and the Senate.

Administrative-territorial division of France

22 regions and 96 administrative divisions. The capital is Paris. Other big cities: Marseille, Lyon, Strasbourg, Toulon.

GDP volume, economic growth rates and other statistical indicators

Index		Growth rate, %
Population, million people		population growth
GDP, billion USD (exchange rate)		Real GDP growth (adjusted for inflation)
GDP, USD billion (according to purchasing power parity)		Growth in domestic demand
GDP per capita, USD (at market exchange rates)		Inflation rate
GDP per capita, USD (Purchasing Power Parity)		current balance deficit. % of GDP
Average exchange rate, EUR/USD USA		Inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI). % of GDP

France is a member of many international economic organizations: the UN (since 1945), the IMF and the World Bank (since 1947), NATO (1949-1966), the OECD (since 1961), the EU (since 1957). ), G7 (since 1975), EBRD (since 1990), WTO (since 1995).

French Fiscal Sphere

More than half of the national income is redistributed through the budget (20% in 1913). Tax collections account for over 44% of the country's GDP. According to this indicator, the country occupies one of the leading places in the EU (along with Sweden). The tax burden increased in the 1990s and exceeds the EU average. The standard VAT rate is 19.6%. The standard corporate tax rate is 33.3%, but there are incentives for small businesses. The income tax is very high, especially its top rates. In 2008, the highest rate was reduced from 60% to 50%.

The French economy is characterized by the following features:

• state budget deficit;
• high public debt;
• foreign trade deficit;
• the French labor market is not flexible, and the unemployment rate is one of the highest compared to other EU countries;
• the level of taxation of French companies and social contributions is considered one of the highest in Europe;
• highly developed banking sector;
• an effective mechanism for the distribution of financial flows and, as a result, the insignificant scale of the shadow economy;
• high strike rate.

On the agenda of the government and legislators is a whole package of measures covering socio-economic, legal, political and international issues.

The core of the planned reforms will be a set of financial and tax measures aimed at implementing the main slogan of N. Sarkozy's program: "Work more - get more." The following measures should “rehabilitate work” and improve the purchasing power of the French:

• Exemption from taxation of overtime work (according to statistics, 37% of employees in France work overtime).
• Deduction from the taxable base of amounts paid on loans taken for the purchase of housing.
• Reduction or complete abolition (in the case of inheritance within the family) of inheritance tax.
• Reducing the tax on large fortunes in the case of investing in small enterprises.
• Cancellation of taxes for working students.
• Expanding earning opportunities for working pensioners.
• Limiting the practice of so-called golden parachutes - "financial gifts" to the leading managers of large companies upon retirement.
• Cancellation of the practice of advance payment of taxes on enterprises.

One of the most difficult reforms planned by the government in the near future promises to be the adoption of a law on the so-called minimum services in the public sector in the event of a strike. It's about mainly about public transport workers (metro, buses, suburban trains), whose strikes more than once led to the complete disorganization of the transport system of large cities, creating extreme inconvenience to their residents. The new law is expected to require strikers to provide a minimum level of transport service, notify the authorities of the start of a strike two days in advance, and hold a secret ballot to continue the strike eight days after it begins.

But, according to experts, the tasks of achieving a "new economic growth" as well as reducing public debt to less than 60% of GDP, reaching a deficit-free budget by 2012 and complying with the "stability pact" of the EU may be difficult to implement.

Foreign economic relations of France

Countries importing products from France: Germany - 14.9%, Spain - 9.3%, Italy - 8.9%, UK - 8.1% (2007).

Countries exporting products to France: Germany - 18.9%, Belgium - 11.4%, Italy - 8.4%, Spain - 7.1% (2007).

The volume of exports in 2008 amounted to 761 billion dollars, the volume of imports - 838 billion dollars.

Main export positions in 2006

	Percentage of the total
Intermediates
Means of production
cars and equipment
Consumer goods
Processed foods and drinks
Main positions in imports in 2006
	Percentage of the total
Intermediates
Means of production
Consumer goods
cars and equipment

As E.P. Ostrovskaya notes in the book “The French Economy in the Post-Industrial World”, due to the general lag in the development of the economic system, changes in the structure of foreign trade exchange began in France later than in other developed countries, but they happened very quickly. During the 60s and early 70s, France was able to overcome such negative aspects as the lag in the share of exports in GDP (half that of the EU leaders), and the unsatisfactory structure of exports (machinery and equipment - less than one fifth), double the rate of export growth.

Trade in goods

IN currently France is one of the major participants in world trade, 6th in the world in terms of exports and 5th in imports.

Export

In 2010, total French exports amounted to $456.8 million: Commodity structure of French exports:

Finished goods 57.8%:

Machinery, equipment (especially for the aircraft industry) and vehicles 42.3%

Consumer goods 15.5% including pharmaceutical goods (features of French statistics that classify them as consumer goods). The share of the textile and footwear industry is also large.

Semi-finished products 24.8%, especially products of the chemical industry

1. Raw materials and fuel 5.9%

The main commodity specialization of French exports is cars 14.5% and agricultural products 11.6%, medicines and cosmetics 10.2%, aircraft and aerospace industry products 7.3%. In general, the structure of the French sector is quite consistent with the normal for a developed country, but is characterized by an extremely high share of the agro-industrial complex.

France's key export trading partners are Germany (14.3%), Italy (8.7%), Spain (8.3%), England (7.8%), Belgium (7.6%), USA (5.8%).

Import

Total French imports in 2010 amounted to $532.2 billion, which is a decline from the 2008 level ($692 billion).

Commodity structure of imports:

Machinery and equipment

Automotive and aircraft products

Raw oil

Products of the chemical industry

Key import partners are Germany (17.9%), Belgium (11.7%), Italy (8.3%), Spain (6.9%), the Netherlands (6.8%), England (5.1%), USA (4.3%).

Trade in services

In terms of trade in services, France currently ranks third in the world in terms of exports, behind the US and the UK. If we consider the structure of the French trade in servants, the main place here is occupied by tourism (in 2006 37.6% of all exports of services), about 80 million tourists visit France annually. Also important areas for the export of services are: transport (23.8%), and business or corporate services (23.7%). Exceptionally low is the indicator of information services, only 1%, with 3.4% on average in the EU. It is important to note that despite the generally good position in the export of services, France lags behind in the most innovative areas, and the most widely represented in the structure of exports are traditional services with low value added that do not require highly skilled labor and innovation.

Export and import of capital

France has traditionally been one of the world's leading exporters of capital. According to the Bank of France, total French investments abroad in 2009 amounted to 105.9 billion euros. Of the total French FDI, the EU-27 countries accounted for 77.5% (€82.1 billion) in 2009, of which the EU-16 countries accounted for 50.4%, and the remaining EU countries accounted for 27.1%. Other developed countries accounted for 9.9% (the most attractive were the US, Japan and Switzerland). Other countries (countries with economies in transition, developing and underdeveloped countries) respectively accounted for 12.6% (of which Brazil, China and India were in priority).

France attracted $57.4 billion in foreign direct investment in 2010, up 22% from 2009. But the position of France in terms of attractiveness to foreign investors is still sporting, despite a number of positive factors such as a large market, excellent transport and communications infrastructure and financial system. First of all, socio-economic factors, peculiarities of labor legislation, and the lag in the development of innovative industries, high taxes, and shortcomings in the organization of R&D prevent France from becoming more attractive to foreign investors.

Foreign trade occupies an important place in the French economy, since it provides about a third of the country's economic growth. The current results of foreign trade are clear evidence that France was able to radically change the situation in the late 80s - early 90s, adapt its economy to market trends in the world and stabilize the foreign trade balance (24, 90).

The structure of French exports has certain features. It has a higher proportion of agricultural goods and raw materials - 20%. Currently leading positions in foreign trade countries occupy machinery and equipment (43% of exports and 39% of imports). The largest share in this group of world trade is occupied by civil aircraft, electrical equipment and complete equipment for the construction of large industrial facilities, different kinds weapons (warships, aircraft, army weapons) (22, 265).

The French economy is wide open to external relations. France ranks fourth in the world in the export of goods, second only to the United States, Germany and Japan, and third in the export of services, behind only the United States and Great Britain. The value of foreign trade turnover per capita in France is on average $8,700 per year (in the USA, $4,800; in Germany, $11,000; and in Great Britain, $7,200). Import of goods and services is 23.5% of GDP, export - 23% (22, 264).

The growth of the openness of the French economy is manifested in an increase in the export orientation of production in leading industries. The export quota for the manufacturing industry exceeds 36%, with a clear advantage for the branches of electrical engineering and transport engineering (22, 265).

France plays a significant role in world exports of the following manufactured goods: electrical equipment (9%), non-ferrous metals and organic chemicals (about 9%), fine chemicals and ferrous metallurgy (10%), pharmaceutical products (more than 12%), products from rubber and plastics (about 13%), glass (second place after Germany - 14%) (22, 265).

In terms of agricultural exports, France lags only behind the United States. More than 1/3 of manufactured products are sold on foreign markets. Agricultural exports are dominated by "mass" products - wheat, barley, corn, and dairy products. Product share high degree processing (confectionery, meat products, chocolate, canned food) is lower than in other leading countries. The country remains the world's number one exporter of processed foods (10.3%), ahead of the Netherlands (8.9%) and the US (7.9%). At the same time, France buys large volumes of agricultural products: rapeseed, sunflower, pork, lamb, horse meat, tropical fruits etc. (22, 266)

France is conducting research on a wide range directions. For a number of them, it occupies leading positions: nuclear power, aviation technology, communications equipment, and some types of industrial electronics. In others, it lags far behind: computer science, electronics, biotechnology. At present, the electronics, aerospace, automotive, chemical and pharmaceutical industries account for more than 60% of industrial R&D spending. At the same time, in industries such as general engineering, metalworking, food industry and others. these expenses are insignificant. In mechanical engineering, the share of R&D costs is much lower than in other leading industries (22, 270).

The transition to an energy-saving type of production, high dependence on imports of fuel and energy resources caused a reorientation in the energy strategy of France. The main attention began to be paid to the development of nuclear energy, as well as alternative energy sources. The development of nuclear energy has made it possible to raise the degree of self-sufficiency of France in energy. As new NPPs are commissioned and liquid-fuel thermal power plants are decommissioned, oil imports are declining (22, 271).

The group of goods with a relatively low level of competitiveness includes products of the paper, furniture, textile and leather and footwear industries, household electrical appliances and some household and industrial electronics, machine tools, metallurgical and forging equipment (22, 277).

Export specialization of France is significantly inferior to others major countries. So, in general engineering, only one production belongs to a high level of specialization (jet engines) and a number - to a moderate one (pumps, steam engines, nuclear reactors, rotary electric power plants, refrigerators, heating equipment, agricultural machinery). At the same time, French goods are seriously inferior to their main competitors (Japan, USA, Germany, Italy and Great Britain) in terms of non-price factors, the role of which has significantly increased in last years. This primarily concerns the quality of the product and its safety, timely delivery and after-sales service, the flexibility of merchandise exports, costs, advertising, and the extent to which changes in market needs are studied (22, 278).

IN last decade in the country's economy, the import component increased significantly (23.5% of GDP), which is associated with the strengthening of the international division of labor and the change in the competitiveness of French goods. The highest share of imports is in the production of engineering and chemical industry products (40 - 60%). This is largely due to the peculiarities of the development of the country's scientific and technical potential and the introduction of scientific achievements into production. France lags behind its competitors in terms of the share of R&D in GDP (3.3% in 1991, while the FRG had 3.6%). characteristic feature research activity is its military orientation. The share of funds allocated for military research reaches 19% of all R&D expenditures, and in the FRG it is about 5% (22, 285).

In recent years, there have been significant changes in the mechanism of state regulation of the country's foreign trade, and, above all, exports. The regulation is aimed at increasing the competitiveness of French goods, is comprehensive and affects, in addition to the sphere of sale of goods, the stage of export production. The methods and means of state intervention, which are distinguished by selectivity and purposefulness, as well as the increasing interconnection of its main levers in the credit, financial and administrative areas, have been significantly expanded (23.5).

The world economy is a system in which, through international economic relations, the national economies of individual countries and their groups are united into a single whole, which in turn contributes to its functioning and the growth of its constituent parts.

The development of the international division of labor and the world economy in the twentieth century. determined by the ever-increasing internationalization of economic life. This process is influenced by various factors:

Firstly, geographical factors, uneven distribution on the globe natural resources, including flora and fauna, various soil and climatic conditions. An increase in output, the emergence of new industries and industries lead to an increased demand for commodities, the receipt of which is limited natural conditions. This stimulates the extraction of raw materials in those countries in which there are corresponding reserves. In addition, there is a growing demand for foodstuffs, which are produced only in certain climatic zones;

Secondly, the degree of development of the productive forces. Large-scale machine production, as a rule, can only be effective with deep specialization in a wide sales market, which leads to the need to enter a foreign market:

Thirdly, scientific and technical progress. With the rapid renewal of products and technologies, it is impossible to achieve the optimal development of all types of production within one country, therefore, an active exchange of products, services and production factors is necessary.

Under these conditions, there is an objective tendency in France to open up national economies through the development of foreign trade.

The very fact of having economic ties between France and other countries does not mean that it has an open economy. At present, the French economy cannot develop in isolation from the world economy, without any links with other countries. Even when autarkic tendencies prevail in French economic policy, external relations inevitably play one role or another.

In terms of absolute size of 26 types of products, France was among the ten largest producers in the world. Along with traditional industries, the electronics, aerospace, and automotive industries have developed. Successes in economic development are largely connected with the solution of the food problem.

In the early 1990s, a new long-term structural and economic policy was developed, which outlined the following main tasks: ensuring a balanced development of industry and Agriculture; direction to accelerated development light industry and the involvement of heavy industry in the supply of consumer goods to the population; elimination of existing disproportions within heavy industry - between the sectors of mining, raw materials and processing complexes, solution of energy and transport problems; stimulating the development of the most progressive types of production with the aim of intensifying the economy and raising its technical level (in particular, the electronics industry).

However, not those industries that were supposed to develop according to the plan developed rapidly. The volume of gross industrial output in the 90s increased by an average of 12%, and the volume of gross agricultural output - by 7.5%. The lag of agriculture behind industry was explained by the fact that in the first half of the 1980s state investments in agriculture were significantly reduced.

If at the end of the 80s they averaged 11.5% of the total amount of state appropriations for capital construction, then in the mid-90s they did not exceed 4%. It was assumed that only through a radical reform of the land tenure and land use system, without major capital investment by the state, a sharp shift in agricultural production is possible. By the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s, a miscalculation came to light, and investments in agriculture were significantly increased. Budget investments, which were directed mainly to the development of large enterprises, accounted for 10% of total investments in fixed assets in the countryside in 1993. About 20% of investments were financed by a bank loan, the rest of the funds came from collective enterprises and individual peasants.

In industrial production, the role of light industry has increased: the share of heavy industry in the growth of gross industrial output in 1983-1993. gg. was 41-43%, while the share of light industry - 37-39%. During this period, there was a reorientation of the defense industry towards the production of civilian products and, in essence, completely new industries for the production of consumer goods were created.

The French economy is characterized by a chronic backlog of energy and transport. Despite the fact that during the years of the Eighth Five-Year Plan (1991-1995) the total production of energy resources somewhat exceeded the planned targets, the gap between the needs of the economy and the growth rates of the energy sector could not be eliminated. Due to the lack of electricity in France in the early 90s, 20% of all production capacities were idle.

In the course of economic reform, there has been an increase in the role of non-centralized sources of financing that are outside the control of the government. The distribution of investments was distributed not by national economic priorities, but by the interests of departments, local administration and market demand.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, active measures were taken in France to accelerate the development of lagging industries. For the period 1989-1993. 45.3% of the volume of state investments in capital construction over these years was directed to the development of the fuel and energy complex and all types of transport.

The main branch of the manufacturing industry is mechanical engineering. This is one of the most dynamically developing industries (growth at the level of 10%). Priority areas - radio electronics, watch industry, production of consumer durables, automotive industry. Mechanical engineering accounts for 27% of gross industrial output.

French engineering is currently represented by a wide range of industries and types of production. The industry satisfies 4/5 of the country's need for electric generators and internal combustion engines, and 9/10 - for machine tools.

The chemical industry is developing rapidly. Its share in industrial production is 11.5%. There has been a noticeable increase in the production of all major types of chemical products, such as hydrochloric acid, caustic soda, chemical fertilizers. At the same time, the development of industry is constrained by the narrowness of the raw material base. The extraction of sulfur pyrites does not meet the needs of sulfuric acid production, and the country imports this type of chemical raw material.

There is a shortage of phosphate fertilizers and soda ash. The structure of the chemical industry is being rebuilt in a number of areas: the development of organic chemistry, the attraction of new types of raw materials, the production of consumer goods - chemical fibers for the textile industry, and household chemicals. The priority sectors of the chemical industry are the rubber and plastic industries.

One of the main prerequisites for a successful industrial development is successful solution problems in agriculture. Currently, the agrarian sector is dominated by trends towards intensification of production. The sown area for grain crops is being reduced. At the same time, the area under cultivation is increasing. industrial crops, the amount of equipment used, land use conditions are rationalized. All this allowed France to achieve high economic indicators solve the food problem and become one of the agriculturally developed countries.

One of the main elements of the reform policy in France is an "open" foreign economic policy, which is regarded as the most important prerequisite for the country's economic development. The transition to an open policy in the field of foreign economic relations has led to a significant adjustment of the concept of "self-reliance", which in the modern interpretation not only does not exclude the use of advanced foreign equipment, technology, management experience and organization of production, as well as foreign financial resources, but, on the contrary , implies the active use of factors in order to strengthen the economic potential of the technical level of the national economy. The tasks put forward are solved by expanding foreign trade, attracting foreign capital in a productive form, and using foreign loans.

general characteristics foreign trade. The most developed form of foreign economic relations of France is foreign trade. Over the years of the reform, China's trade turnover increased from $2.1 billion in 1978 to $29 billion in 1996, or 14.5 times, with exports growing faster. Over the period of time, the share of exports in the country's GDP increased from 4 to 20%, resulting in a significant increase in the role of external factors in the economic development of France. Commodity exports provide 75-80% of all foreign exchange earnings. In terms of exports, France ranks 43rd in the world.

The dependence of the French economy on imports increased (5% in 1978 and 10% in 1996), which indicates a fairly deep involvement of France in world economic relations. In terms of imports, France ranks 46th in the world. France's share of world trade from 1978 to 1996 increased by almost 5 times, but still remains quite low at about 3%. It should be noted that in 1978 it was only 0.75%.

One of the most important tasks of French foreign trade is the acquisition of machinery and technology for the development of the national economy. In this regard, in the 90s, foreign trade was reoriented from the purchase of component equipment to the purchase of key equipment and non-material technology (patents, licenses, etc.), since in this case, the acquisition of equipment and technology gives France the opportunity on the basis of reconstructed enterprises set up its own production of modern products and, ultimately, reach a higher level of technical development.

Machine-building and electrical products account for at least 20% of exports. French engineering exports include machine tools, shipbuilding machinery, and bicycles.

In the 1990s, the share of raw materials and semi-finished products in total French exports steadily decreased (from 49% in 1980 to 34% in 1993).

The degree of dependence of some industries on exports is quite significant. Exports are of the greatest importance for the textile industry.

Literature

1. Lomakin V.K. World economy: Textbook for universities. - M .: UNITI,

2. Spiridonov S. K. World economy: Textbook., M .: "Progress", 2002.

3. Eklund K. Efficient economy: Swedish model.-M.:

Economics, 2003

4. World economy and international relations// №1, 2004. With. 4.

The French economy is deeply embedded in the world economy. IN foreign economic relations of France in post-war years expanded and strengthened the international positions of French financial and industrial groups, including in the EU, where France, along with Germany, is the leader.

International trade

The export quota of the French economy is growing (up to 30% in the 1990s). France increased its share in world trade to 6-7%, which gave it the fourth place in the world. But in recent years, in terms of exports, it has been outstripped by the UK, and in 2003 by China. In 2008, the volume of exports of goods amounted to 490.0 billion dollars. France exports about half of industrial products (cars, electrical engineering, aviation and aerospace equipment, weapons, equipment for high-speed rail transport, chemical products, perfumes, high fashion, etc.). ), a significant part of agricultural products is exported (wine, cognac, poultry products, cheeses, wheat, etc.). Imports ($533.0 billion in 2008) consist mainly of oil, natural gas, non-ferrous metals, commercial timber and paper pulp, foodstuffs, and industrial equipment. France has an active balance in equipment trade - its exports significantly exceed purchases abroad.

Relations with the EU countries (especially with Germany, Italy, the Belgian-Luxembourg Economic Union, Great Britain) are of the greatest importance in France's foreign trade. An important role is played by trade with the USA, Japan, China, African countries. Relations with the countries of the Middle and Near East and Latin America are being strengthened.

French companies are making great efforts to expand their foreign economic expansion. An important means of it is the export of capital. France accounts for 5% of the total foreign direct investment.

France is also a major importer of capital. The leading place among foreign firms is occupied by American (48%). Investments of each separately European country significantly inferior to them.

A large influx of foreign capital began in the 1960s. The share of foreign firms accounts for more than 1/4 of the total turnover and about 1/3 of commodity exports. Foreign capital is concentrated in the key, newest branches of industry, where it often occupies a leading position. So, in the oil refining industry, it controls 52% of the industry's turnover, in the chemical industry - 55%, in agricultural engineering - 50%, in the production of computers and informatics - 49%, in precision instrumentation - 36%. Most of the foreign investment is in large enterprises, many of which are among the top ten firms in the industry. In the production of computers, the leading positions are occupied by the American IBM and Honeywell, and in agricultural engineering by International Havester, Caterpillar, and Deer & Co.

Economic assistance plays an important role in ensuring the foreign economic expansion of companies in the foreign markets of developing countries. Due to financial support from the state, companies compensate for their weakness in the development of foreign markets. In terms of aid, France is second only to the United States and Japan, and in terms of its share in GDP, it surpasses all leading countries. The volume of accumulated direct investments of France in other countries in 2002 amounted to 497 billion dollars (third place in the world). 2.45 million people work at foreign enterprises of French TNCs. The volume of foreign investment in France also increased, reaching $267 billion in 2002.

The state of the country's balance of payments has been improving in recent years, and the current balance of payments is positive.

economic policy france market

Economic relations with the Russian Federation

France maintains fairly stable economic relations with Russian Federation. In terms of trade turnover, it ranks ninth among Russia's partners.

After the contraction of trade during the Russian crisis of 1998, the volume of trade reached $4.5 billion in 2003, exceeding the best performance of 1997 - $3.2 billion. In 2008, the Franco-Russian trade turnover reached level of 13.5 billion dollars. French investments in Russian economy. According to the data for the first half of 2005, the share of France was 3.3% of the total investment of the top ten investors, which put it in eighth place. In the first half of 2006, France's figures rose to 6.8%. She moved up to sixth place. In the first half of 2007, France became the third investor, accounting for 9.9% of the total investment of the top ten investors.

In Russian exports to France, 40% is oil and oil products, 30% is natural gas. An important place is also occupied by metals, timber, pulp and paper and consumer goods, some chemical products. Machine and technical products account for only 2-3% of the value of exports.

The share of equipment in French deliveries to the Russian Federation is 15-20%. An important place in imports is occupied by consumer goods, in particular fabrics, shoes, clothing, perfumes, food, and drinks.

Both in terms of volume and structure, trade ties do not correspond to the capabilities and needs of the economies of both countries.

In recent years there has been a growing interest in France and Russia in expanding trade and other forms of cooperation.

IN 2008 trade with the Russian Federation amounted to 16.7 billion euros according to French statistics, 16.4 billion dollars according to Russian statistics.