Insights | French enterprises ambitious in Chinese market: ambassador

By Peng Dawei, Zhao Li

(ECNS) -- French Ambassador to China Bertrand Lortholary said on Monday that French enterprises are ambitious in the Chinese market and there is always more to be done between French companies and the Chinese market.

During an interview with ECNS in Suzhou, east China’s Jiangsu Province, Lortholary, who came to attend the 5th China-France Cultural Forum, said China and France have built so many links over the years.

The year 2024 will mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France. Coinciding with this milestone are China-France Year of Culture and Tourism and the Paris Olympics.

“We plan to celebrate with passion and ambition during the whole year of 2024,” he said.

The ambassador introduced that France is a country with top-level technologies and very appreciated traditions, particularly when it comes to food and wine. “We've many friends around the world who want to work more with French companies to get benefits,” he said. 

According to the ambassador, a total of about 140 French companies in every field ranging from industrial companies to agriculture companies attended the CIIE in Shanghai last week.

At the same time, France had a very strong presence in the PRO wine exhibition in Shanghai with 78 French wine companies, which made it the moment NO.1 country on this exhibition, he added.

“So it shows you how ambitious we are, how much we believe that there is always more to be done between French companies and the Chinese market,” Lortholary said. 

According to data from the French Statistics Bureau, China-France goods trade exceeded 100 billion Euros in 2022, with a year-on-year growth of 14.6 percent, showing strong momentum. 

Currently, France is China's third-largest trading partner and the third-largest source of actual investment within the European Union, while China is France's largest trading partner in Asia and the seventh-largest globally.