France Balance of Trade

Last Release

Nov 30, 2024

Actual

-7,085

Units In

EUR Million

-7,666

Frequency

Monthly

Next Release

Feb 07, 2025

Time to Release

28 Days 8 Hours

Highest	Lowest	Average	Date Range	Source
2,674 Oct 1997	-17,486.7 Sep 2022	-1,937.11 EUR Million	1970-2024	N/A

Since 2004, France has been recording trade deficits due the gradual erosion of the export-oriented industry, the appreciation of the euro and the increasing dependency on imports of energy and manufactured products. In 2017, the biggest trade deficits were recorded with: China & Hong Kong, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Belgium; while the biggest trade surpluses were recorded with: the Middle East, the UK, Africa and Switzerland.

Latest Updates

The trade gap in France narrowed to €7.1 billion in November 2024 from a downwardly revised €7.5 billion in October, slightly exceeding forecasts of a €7 billion shortfall. This was the smallest trade deficit in four periods, as exports rose 2.9% month-on-month to €50.1 billion, driven by higher sales of natural hydrocarbons, other extractive industry products, electricity, waste (+52.1%), and transport equipment (+7.2%). Export growth was recorded across most regions except America (-4.4%), with increases to the European Union (+2%), Africa (+5.5%), the Middle East (+11.8%), and Asia (+8.1%). Meanwhile, imports grew at a slower pace of 1.8% to €57.2 billion, with purchases particularly higher for transport equipment (+7.9%) and agri-food products (+2.6%). Import growth was seen across all major regions: European Union (+0.7%), Africa (+5.5%), America (+1.9%), the Middle East (+8.5%), and Asia (+4.8%).