President Emmanuel Macron’s office said Monday that the “Choose France” business gathering this year is anticipated to secure 20 billion euros ($22.47 billion) in new investment, including projects in the energy, industrial, and defence sectors.
Can Macron reverse the trend of outbound investments?
Previous investor impressions of France as a high-tax, sclerotic economy have changed as a result of Macron’s personal attempts to court world business leaders, making the Choose France conferences in the lavish Palace of Versailles a must-attend for the world’s corporate elite.
How effective is the 2025 Choose France summit?
The event raised 15 billion euros last year. Before the 2025 event begins later on Monday, an extra 17 billion euros worth of projects have already been committed, according to Finance Minister Eric Lombard on RTL radio.
While London-based fintech Revolut intends to invest 1 billion euros over the next three years in expanding in France and will seek a French banking license, the U.S. logistics giant Prologis is scheduled to invest 6.4 billion euros in four data centres on the Ile-de-France.
In the rare earth industry, announcements are also anticipated from businesses ranging from Amazon to MGX in the United Arab Emirates and Less Common Metals Limited in Britain. According to the Elysee, the Portuguese business Tekever would invest 100 million euros to construct a drone manufacturing plant in the southwest.
How did the US increase investments amid the global slowdown?
As turmoil fueled by U.S. President Trump’s trade policies puts additional strain on Europe’s faltering economy, Macron’s administration is under pressure to stop a wave of job losses in industry.
Lombard said that the government should be able to reach a 2025 objective for economic growth of 0.7%.
“In the face of global competition, France demonstrates it has weapons, and France is on the offensive to attract investments,”
he added.
According to EY’s European Investment Monitor, an annual poll of thousands of business executives, France has been the top destination for foreign investments for the last six years. Macron’s aides have pounced on this as proof that his combination of supply-side reforms has been working.
However, according to this year’s edition, the number of investment projects in Europe has decreased for the second year in a row, while those in the US increased by 5% between 2023 and 2024. EY said this was due to the popularity of Trump’s pro-business pledges and the Inflation Reduction Act’s subsidy package.
Macron has failed to deter French corporations from making large investments overseas despite the influx of foreign capital into France. Sanofi’s proposal to spend at least $20 billion to increase production in the United States has angered French legislators.
The 2025 “Choose France” summit highlights France’s increasing attractiveness to global investors, with record-level commitments that will further solidify the nation’s economic strength and capacity for innovation. President Macron’s forward-thinking action to engage with the international business community continues to produce significant benefits, solidifying France as a top European destination for foreign investment.
