France's Economy

2 Pages 422 Words

The economy of France, a highly diversified market economy with now only a handful of state-owned companies, is among the most developed ones, with large input of high technologies. It ranked as the fifth-largest in the world in 2003, behind the United States, Japan, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

According to the WTO, in 2003 France was the fifth-largest exporter in merchandise trade in the world (behind the United States, Germany, Japan, and China, but ahead of the United Kingdom), and the fourth-largest importer (behind the United States, Germany, and China, but ahead of the United Kingdom and of Japan).

According to the OECD in 2003 France hosts the largest percentage of foreigner international investments ahead United States and Belgium and is also so far the most energy independent Western country thanks to its nuclear energy production apparatus that makes France also the minor producer of carbon dioxide among the seven most industrialised countries in the world. Accordingly, the standards of living in France are very high.

France's economy combines extensive private enterprise with substantial, but declining, government intervention (see dirigisme). Large tracts of fertile land, the application of modern technology, and subsidies have combined to make France the leading agricultural producer in Western Europe and, even after the loss of Algeria in the 1960s, the French economy remains one of the most important and influential economies in the world. France also has a leading aerospace industry and is the only European power to have its own national space centre.

With over 77 million tourists a year, far ahead Spain (51.7 million) and United States (41.9 million) France is ranked as the major tourist destination in the world, featuring cities of high cultural interest (Paris being the foremost), beaches and seaside resorts, ski resorts and rural regions that many enjoy for their calm.

The government retains consi...