France Balance of Trade

Last Release

Dec 31, 2024

Actual

-3,905

Units In

EUR Million

-7,085

Frequency

Monthly

Next Release

Mar 07, 2025

Time to Release

24 Days 23 Hours

Highest	Lowest	Average	Date Range	Source
2,674 Oct 1997	-17,486.7 Sep 2022	-1,940.09 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 €3.9 billion in December 2024, down from a revised €6.3 billion in November and below the expected €5.3 billion shortfall. This marks the smallest trade deficit since November 2020, as exports rose 4% month-on-month to €52.3 billion, driven by higher sales of transport equipment (+12.6%), refined petroleum products and coke (+5.2%), and mechanical, electrical, electronic, and computer equipment (+5%). Export growth was recorded across all regions, including the Middle East (+26.8%), America (+13.3%), Asia (+10.2%), the European Union (+0.6%), and Africa (+0.5%). Meanwhile, imports fell 0.8% to €56.2 billion, with notable declines in purchases of refined petroleum products and coke (-9%) and natural hydrocarbons (-8.5%). Imports decreased from Asia (-4.3%), Africa (-1.1%), and the European Union (-0.7%), while rising from America (+4.2%).