At a time when the specter of deindustrialization is re-emerging in France with the return of social plans, the Court of Auditors analyzes the state of the industry over the last decade and its verdict is more than mixed. In a report made public on Thursday, November 28, the institution takes stock of public policies in favor of the industry during the years 2013-2023. A period constantly highlighted by the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, as the beginning of the reindustrialization of France, after forty years of continuous crises between 1970 and 2000.
The Court of Auditors does not really address the term reindustrialization and, at most, grants “a recent stabilization and at a low level of the weight of the industry in the economy” French. In short, there is nothing to brag about. The policies carried out under the presidencies of François Hollande (2012-2017) and then Emmanuel Macron present, according to the institution, “The results are still fragile”. In particular, France remains the poor European student: despite various recovery plans, the share of the manufacturing industry in national wealth stagnates at 11% of gross domestic product, well below that of Germany ( 21%) and Italy (17.5%).
Generally speaking, the Court recognizes that industrial employment has certainly increased to stabilize “in 2023 around 10% of total employment” in France, but “However, it is still significantly lower than in [ses] neighbors (17% in Italy, 18% in Germany) ». As for industrial companies, they are “relatively few” and many are large, internationally oriented groups with significant risks of moving their activities abroad.
Energy cost weight
The national industry suffers a chronic loss of competitiveness that has not improved despite the recovery after the 2020 health crisis. ” stall “ It is the cause, according to the Court, of the trade deficit that has not stopped increasing since the 2000s. Between 2000 and 2023, France went from second to fourth place among European exporting countries. Its pillars continue to be aeronautics, space, drinks and luxury. But exports have plummeted in electrical products, machinery and equipment, and especially in the automobile sectors.
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