France, the gateway to Europe
With a surface area of 551,500 km², France is the largest country in Western Europe. It has the second largest population in Europe after Germany.
France has three seaboards.
It has land borders with Spain and Italy in the south, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and Switzerland in the east.
France has the most extensive and efficient transport network in Europe: 10,383 km of highway, the TGV with 1,876 km of high-speed line and connections to the European network, together with another 27,337 km of standard railway line. In terms of sea and river transport, one third of the principal ports in Europe are French.

An enviable location from which to access the world’s biggest market and its 450 million consumers.

France, attractive and competitive :
France is the world’s fifth-largest economic power. Seventy million foreign tourists spend an average of one week in the country each year. France is not only attractive to tourists but it is also one of the primary destinations in Europe for international investment.
France is ranked first among the world’s largest countries in terms of hourly productivity, ahead of the United States.
The 20,000 foreign companies already operating in the country and the leaders of new businesses already know it: France is a wise choice for expansion into the European market.

France, focusing on innovation
The French government has implemented a policy to support research and innovation through the creation of competitiveness clusters. Financial assistance is given to all companies setting up operations within the perimeter of the clusters to develop R&D programs. Special emphasis is thus placed on centers of excellence, young innovative companies and research contracts.

185,000 researchers
Ranked 5th in the world in terms of scientific publications
Ranked 5th in the world in terms of patents filed

The costs of setting up a business in France
France has some of the lowest business setup costs in Europe in terms of energy, transport, land and actual wages.

It also has the lowest total company costs in Western Europe. It is ranked 3rd in terms of economic attractiveness behind Singapore and Canada, according to the international company costs guide produced by KPMG.

France has the lowest electricity prices in Europe.
Although property prices in Paris are among the highest in Western Europe, the French capital is not representative of France as a whole and prices in the regions are much lower.