Question about France...

[prostock]

Hey i just have a question... How is france so rich? France is one of the healthiest, wealthiest countries in the world. And they have a strong economic influence. But why? I cant really recall what the french do? For example, say, Japan? They make tons of everyday products and cars, Sony, Honda, Lexus, Motorola etc... I know France makes a good quality of bottled water, Evian(sp?) but asides from that i am clueless... Would someone please fill my knowledge?

[Douai]

"With a GDP of 1.7 trillion euros (1.7×1012 €; 2005 data), France is the sixth largest economy in the world in USD exchange-rate terms, the seventh largest by purchasing power parity, while showing the lowest poverty rate amongst the large economies. According to World Bank and IMF figures, it is the third largest in Europe after Germany and the United Kingdom. It has substantial agricultural resources, a large industrial base, and a highly skilled workforce. A dynamic services sector accounts for an increasingly large share of economic activity (74% in 2006) and has been responsible for nearly all job creation in recent years. GDP growth averaged 2% between 1994 and 1998, with 3% recorded in 2000. Compared to other economies, France's GDP growth is relatively robust, the unemployment rate is high, at nearly 10%, and a rising trade deficit has characterised a malaise in the French economy since the global economic downturn in 2000. However, France's income inequality (measured by the Gini coefficient) has remained low compared to other economies where it has increased considerably (most notably in the United Kingdom and the United States). Moreover, France's poverty rate remains one of the lowest in the world, at 6% (compared to 18% in the UK and 15% in the US)" (Wikipedia.org)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_France

[ilv2]

agriculture and the cap among other things (tourism for example is huge for france, both w/ respect to foreign tourism and also within).

this should go in the NSR thread though

[SportBoy333]

I cant really recall what the french do? For example, say, Japan? They make tons of everyday products and cars, Sony, Honda, Lexus, Motorola etc... I know France makes a good quality of bottled water, Evian(sp?) but asides from that i am clueless... Would someone please fill my knowledge?

wine ?

[Gotham PSG]

I have to say... ROFL
btw, Motorola is american

Anyway, France is the world's second agricultural producer, the world's top tourism destination, it is home to a lot of high tech companies, home to some big banks, and so on and so forth.
And Belgium isn't doing much either, but that doesn't stop them from being "rich" as you say

[Anti-footix]

Hey i just have a question... How is france so rich? France is one of the healthiest, wealthiest countries in the world. And they have a strong economic influence. But why? I cant really recall what the french do? For example, say, Japan? They make tons of everyday products and cars, Sony, Honda, Lexus, Motorola etc... I know France makes a good quality of bottled water, Evian(sp?) but asides from that i am clueless... Would someone please fill my knowledge?
ask yourself who has built your Nuclear power stations or your high velocity trains and maybe you will understand why France is "so rich".
and by the way if South Korea was in Europe, maybe you would know more about renault, peugeot and citroën than about lexus and honda.
and what about Accor, Alcatel, Alstom, Air France, Airbus, Air Liquide, Arcelor, Areva, Auchan, Aventis, Bouygues, Carrefour, Danone, Elf, Eravia, Geodis, Hachette, Havas, JCDecaux, L'Oréal, Michelin, Sagem, Saint Gobain, Schneider Electric, STMicroelectronics, Total, Thales, UGC, Vinci...
the particularity of France economy is that France does a lot of BtoB outside Europe, but not a lot of BtoC. that's why French products are not known well known outside Europe.

[Pierre-Henri]

Plus, many french products are sold under un-french names. We've already talked about Gallet military armors, which are sold under another name in the USA. Same thing about Nissan, which is more or less a part of Renault. Same with banks or insurance companies. Many of them are french, but don't necessarily call themselves "Dupont Inc" or "Durand Corp".

[Nanbawan]

and by the way if South Korea was in Europe, maybe you would know more about renault, peugeot and citroën than about lexus and honda.


Or if he was following international motorsports.

http://uk.sports.yahoo.com/f1/worldchampionship/standing/teams/standing.html

http://uk.sports.yahoo.com/rall/world-10-t.html

This amusing website (http://www.francesucks.com/) gave a list of products you'd have to boycott in the US if you wanted to put France into recession. It's seems to be a little more complicated than replacing French wines.

Air France. Air Liquide. Airbus. Alcatel. Allegra (allergy medication). Aqualung (including: Spirotechnique, Technisub, US Divers, and SeaQuest). AXA Advisors Bank of the West (owned by BNP Paribas). Beneteau (boats). BF Goodrich (owned by Michelin). BIC (razors, pens and lighters). Biotherm (cosmetics). Black Bush. Bollinger (champagne). Car & Driver Magazine. Cartier. Chanel. Chivas Regal (scotch). Christian Dior. Club Med (vacations). Culligan (owned by Vivendi). Dannon (yogurt and dairy foods). DKNY. Dom Perignon. Durand Crystal Elle Magazine. Essilor Optical Products. Evian. Fina Oil (billions invested in Iraqi oil fields). First Hawaiian Bank. George Magazine. Givenchy. Glenlivet (scotch). Grey Goose (Vodka). Hennessy. Jacobs Creek (owned by Pernod Ricard since 1989). Jameson (whiskey). Jerry Springer (talk show). Krups (coffee and cappuccino makers). Lancome. Le Creuset (cookware). L'Oreal (health and beauty products). Louis Vuitton. Marie Claire. Martel Cognac. Maybelline. Méphisto (shoes and clothes). Michelin (tires and auto parts). Mikasa (crystal and glass). Moet (champagne). Motel 6. Motown Records. MP3.com. Mumms (champagne). Nissan (cars; majority owned by Renault). Nivea. Normany Butter. Parents Magazine. Peugeot (automobiles). Pierre Cardin. Pierre Fabre Inc. Playstation Magazine. ProScan (owned by Thomson Electronics, France). ublicis Group (including Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising). RCA (televisions and electronics; owned by Thomson Electronics). Red Magazine. Red Roof Inns (owned by Accor group in France). Renault (automobiles). Road & Track Magazine. Roquefort cheese (all Roquefort cheese is made in France). Rowenta (toasters, irons, coffee makers, etc.). Royal Canadian. Salomon (skis). Seagram's Gin. Sierra Software and Computer Games. Smart & Final. Sofitel (hotels, owned by Accor). Sparkletts (water, owned by Danone). Spencer Gifts. Sundance Channel. Taylor Made (golf). Technicolor. T-Fal (kitchenware). Total gas stations. UbiSoft (computer games). Uniroyal. Universal Studios (music, movies and amusement parks; owned by Vivendi-Universal). USFilter. Veritas Group. Veuve Clicquot Champagne. Vittel. Vivendi. Wild Turkey (bourbon). Woman's Day Magazine. Yoplait (The French company Sodiaal owns a 50 percent stake). Yves Saint Laurent. Zodiac Inflatable Boats.

Jerry Springer...:confused:

[lefutur]

fashion and beauty products are king in france. luxury products with a french name will always sell. wines, cognacs, perfumes, cheese, clothing, jewelry, etc, etc, etc.

[vanGobbel redded]

How much of the national income is earned on the African continent i wonder? France still has huge interests over there, not?

And well, that the only French product the topicstarter knows is Evian..says enough about his intelligence :rolleyes:

[prostock]

How much of the national income is earned on the African continent i wonder? France still has huge interests over there, not?

And well, that the only French product the topicstarter knows is Evian..says enough about his intelligence :rolleyes:

haha i didnt mean to insult, i live in North america, and yeah, american/japanese/italian products are really commen here and yea. Anyways thaks for the responses.

[Douai]

And well, that the only French product the topicstarter knows is Evian..says enough about his intelligence :rolleyes:
Exactly.

Same thing about Nissan, which is more or less a part of Renault.
I still wish that I could buy a Renault or a Peugeot car in America today.They were sold in the U.S. before.I heard that one reason they weren't successful here was that car mechanics had trouble repairing them.Supposely, since car mechanics could not repair them people got the notion that the French can't design a quality vehicle.

[Douai]

I'm not sure how serious prostock is asking his question.The only product he knows the French make is water by Evian.I find that odd since France is globally well known for it's wine, food, and culture.I think prostock is either extremely naive or a troll.This thread he started in the Australia section on BigSoccer also makes me think he may be trolling:
How do u Aussie's feel that your are in the Asian division? When i told my friends that Australia is now in the asian division they were like wtf? Australians are white. Do you feel this way?
http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?p=9415470#post9415470

Why doesn't it make sense that Australia would be able to join the ASEAN Football Federation, a subset of the Asian Football Confederation?"The AFF was founded in 1994 by the 10 nations in Thailand, Philippines, Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia,Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar" (Wikipedia.org).It should be an issue that Australia joins the AFC, a federation that is geographically close to Australia, just because Australia has many Europeans living there?

[Nanbawan]

I still wish that I could buy a Renault or a Peugeot car in America today.

AFAIK, it may be due to the cost of sustaining a commercial network overseas, plus the marketing efforts (like you pointed out) for something that's far from guaranteed in terms of profitability. There are so many sharks in the international auto-industry today that french auto makers are playing it rather safe when it comes to expanditures.

If I were a little bit mischevious, I'd say it also shows in the cars they make. Not saying they're cheap but little fantasy and very prudent and following societal trends very closely* as far as concepts are concerned. Technically good cars, but you can hardly say you're craving for them. Well, apparently they say they'll work on that, as usual.

This said, Honda**, a company which size is comparable to Peugeot sells a lot in the US. There might be a chance for our auto makers there yet it's likely they'd rather consolidate their usual markets unless there's a clear viable opportunity.

*Read : women, family, safety, environment. Nothing wrong with these, it's just they want to appear so 'all of this' friendly. Well, that's what marketing is mainly about : images, discourses, appearance. Too bad (real) fun and sexiness ain't part of it as far as nowadays cars are concerned...

**
In 2005, the nine leading groups

1. General Motors (9.1 mio. vehicles, including Daewoo)
2. Toyota (8.4 mio.)
3. Ford (7.8 mio., including Mazda)
4. Renault-Nissan (6.1 mio.)
5. Volkswagen (5.2 mio.)
6. DaimlerChrysler (4.8 mio.)
7. Honda (3.4 mio.)
8. Peugeot (3.4 mio.)
9. Hyundai (3.1 mio.)


http://www.pommert.de/virtualia/garage/

[Nanbawan]

Intentionally or not, the threadstarter brings an issue France is currently still facing. Very difficult international PR. What just happened about Lebanon is another proof of that. France tried its best to broker a cease fire (and then spare lives, after all, it is what was at stake) an put in place this new UNIFIL.

But, because of the way France's position was perceived while negociating the rules of engagement with the UN which was a legitimate and wise move (better now than when guys are under fire) if you ask me, the country has still lost credibility in international media (and even in Lebanon) because of these famous 200 troops who debarked in the ME. France's concerns and questions about the mission were there from the start yet none of this was apparently properly 'translated' in the news...

I don't know where, I don't know how, but there's certainly something to be done about our national communication. Even if we're facing global media carrying the not so francophile sentiment if not a dubious spin when it comes to the hexagon. Not so long ago, I would have thought this was just cosmetic ; now with the last few months, it appears to be real problem that hampers France's action in so many circumstances. Not that the country is irreprochable - far from it - but I'm getting fed up at reading stuff that are incorrect (OK), unfair or quite frankly dishonest. More so when from time to time, the country is trying to take the initiative and bring something constructive for the international community in a very complex area.

In this affair, you almost have the impression that there are more French troops because of Italy's declarations of sending 3,000 men. Italy-France all over again...Poland in 2003, Italy now. Is being stabbed in the back a new item to add in our clichés list ? Yet, who has actual troops already on the ground (even if it's a reduced figure), who has 1,700 non UN troops in back up in the area (something nobody spoke about) ?

Sorry about the ranting, the whole thing leaves me a bitter taste.

[prostock]

I'm not sure how serious prostock is asking his question.The only product he knows the French make is water by Evian.I find that odd since France is globally well known for it's wine, food, and culture.I think prostock is either extremely naive or a troll.This thread he started in the Australia section on BigSoccer also makes me think he may be trolling:

http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?p=9415470#post9415470

Why doesn't it make sense that Australia would be able to join the ASEAN Football Federation, a subset of the Asian Football Confederation?"The AFF was founded in 1994 by the 10 nations in Thailand, Philippines, Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia,Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar" (Wikipedia.org).It should be an issue that Australia joins the AFC, a federation that is geographically close to Australia, just because Australia has many Europeans living there?

honestly why are you people so tense? I didnt mean to insult anybody all the french posters seem to be taking shots at me . I was just curious. Mods close this thread if u want .

[Nanbawan]

honestly why are you people so tense? I didnt mean to insult anybody all the french posters seem to be taking shots at me . I was just curious. Mods close this thread if u want .

I did not take shots at you. As to why we may be tense, my previous post and the fact that French are still subject to frequent and tiring abuse or trolling in these premises (has a French poster ever opened a trolling thread in another country forum) that our perception might have been shifted. Too bad for our proverbial diplomacy...:rolleyes:

Personally, I gave you the benefit of the doubt on this one. My advice to you be to avoid anything that could be perceived as mockery in a thread starting post. You might have the impression that we're a-hole but we're usually cool with people who are cool with us. Anyway, you were right to explain yourself, it helps dissipate misunderstandings. :)

[jambon-beurre]

has a French poster ever opened a trolling thread in another country forum ?

Alphonse? ;)

[ilv2]

Alphonse? ;)

i love that guy!

[Gotham PSG]

btw, talking about french companies, don't forget about Atari