I found an interesting article from M. JL Delmas which I have tried to translate and summarise as such:
✍️ For a long time, France has been envious of the famous “German model” in terms of the European economy, but it now has more and more advantages.
It’s gloomy, cold, and Christmas is still three weeks away… To avoid getting too depressed, 20 Minutes decided to play a little game: comparing ourselves to the Germans and claiming that we are better than them.
Now, we’re not talking about obvious things like “French gastronomy is superior” or “I prefer the French Riviera to the Baltic Sea” (thanks for the revelation), but rather about comparing ourselves on their own turf: the economy.
Several indicators show a slow and far from complete French comeback. And don’t forget: all of this is obviously subjective.
If you were born in France between the 1980s and 2010, Germany probably brings two images to mind: Seville 1982, where the German football team defeated the overly romantic French in the World Cup semi-finals, and the famous “German model” in terms of the economy. For a long time, Berlin embodied the European locomotive, the only good student in the Old Continent who managed to maintain the youthful energy of growth.
But with time, even great myths crumble. For several years now, in football, France has been dominating its neighbor. And according to the German weekly Der Spiegel, it is on the verge of doing the same in terms of the economy. In September, Der Spiegel published an article with an explicit title: “France is Germany, but better!” Since we’re a little chauvinistic (just a little), we decided to prove that Der Spiegel is right. Here are five economic indicators where France comes out on top.
- Growth
Let’s start with the triple-word score, the goal from outside the box that ends up in the top corner, the strike in bowling: GROWTH. France has had a growth rate twice as fast as Germany’s over the past five years, excluding 2020 during the pandemic, when Paris stumbled more than Berlin. But even with the pangolin, over the period from 2018 to 2023, French growth reached 5.5%, while Germany’s stagnated at 2.5%, according to the World Bank. So long, Germans, in the rearview mirror.
- Production costs
According to the Boston Consulting Group, in 2022, it was cheaper to produce a French product than a German one, taking into account all salary, energy, and transportation costs. Specifically, a product manufactured in France and exported to the United States was 15% more expensive compared to producing it directly in Uncle Sam’s country, while it was 20% more expensive for a German product.
This is a significant advantage in the competition between countries to have the best competitiveness. In 2019, during the last evaluation by the Boston Consulting Group, Germany was ahead of France.
- Attractiveness for foreign investments
For the fourth consecutive year, France is at the top of Europe for attracting foreign investments. In 2022, 1,259 foreign direct investments (FDI) were made in France, according to the audit and consulting firm EY, compared to 832 in Germany, the third European country. And to add to our pleasure, we surpass not one, but two hated neighbors in sports, as the United Kingdom ranks second with 929 FDI.
- Number of economic champions
Another national pride, France still has the highest number of companies in Europe in the coveted Top 100 most valuable global companies (meaning the most valued on the stock market). In the latest ranking by EY in December 2022, France has five companies on the list: LVMH (15th), L’Oréal (49th), Hermès (58th), TotalEnergies (62nd), and Christian Dior (84th). The success of the luxury industry, one of the industries that has rebounded the best during and after Covid, explains this French dominance. Meanwhile, no German company is in the top 100 (those big losers), with the most valued being software publisher SAP, valued at $121 billion, barely ranking 106th.
- Inflation
Yes, the grumpy ones will say that currently, inflation is slightly lower in Germany (3.2% over one year) than in France (3.4%). But taking into account the entire “very annoyed price surge” crisis since the war in Ukraine, France has suffered much less than its neighbor across the Rhine.
Overall, in 2023, both countries are expected to be hit equally hard in terms of inflation, as the Bank of France and the Kiel Institute predict an annual inflation rate of 5.8%. But in 2022, at the height of the crisis, France experienced a price increase of “only” 5.2%, compared to 6.9% for Germany.
Obviously, in our selection, we deliberately forgot to mention the unemployment rate, GDP, debt, or the trade balance… Let’s admit it: the French economy is generally inferior to that of our neighbor. However, in football, objectively speaking, we are far superior. That’s something, at least.
I do it my way 