agricultural producer in Western Europe. Largely self-sufficient in
agricultural products, France is a major exporter of wheat and dairy
products. The industrial sector generates about one-quarter of GDP,
and the growing services sector has become crucial to the economy.
Following stagnation and recession in 1991-93, French GDP in 1994
expanded 2.4%. Growth in 1995 is expected to be in the 3.0% to 3.5%
range. Persistently high unemployment will still pose a major problem
for the government. Paris remains committed to maintaining the
franc-deutsche mark parity, which has kept French interest rates high
despite France's low inflation. Although the pace of economic and
financial integration within the European Union has slowed down,
integration presumably will remain a major force shaping the fortunes
of the various economic sectors over the next few years.

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $1.0801 trillion
(1994 est.)

National product real growth rate: 2.4% (1994 est.)

National product per capita: $18,670 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.6% (1994)

Unemployment rate: 12.6% (yearend 1994)

Budget:
revenues: $220.5 billion
expenditures: $249.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $47
billion (1993 budget)

Exports: $249.2 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: machinery and transportation equipment, chemicals,
foodstuffs, agricultural products, iron and steel products, textiles
and clothing
partners: Germany 18.6%, Italy 11.0%, Spain 11.0%, Belgium-Luxembourg
9.1%, UK 8.8%, Netherlands 7.9%, US 6.4%, Japan 2.0%, FSU 0.7% (1991
est.)

Imports: $238.1 billion (c.i.f., 1994 est.)
commodities: crude oil, machinery and equipment, agricultural
products, chemicals, iron and steel products
partners: Germany 17.8%, Italy 10.9%, US 9.5%, Netherlands 8.9%, Spain
8.8%, Belgium-Luxembourg 8.5%, UK 7.5%, Japan 4.1%, FSU 1.3% (1991
est.)

External debt: $300 billion (1993 est.)

Industrial production: growth rate 2.6% (1994 est.)

Electricity:
capacity: 105,250,000 kW
production: 447 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 6,149 kWh (1993)

Industries: steel, machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy,
aircraft, electronics, mining, textiles, food processing, tourism

Agriculture: accounts for 4% of GDP (including fishing and forestry);
one of the world's top five wheat producers; other principal products
- beef, dairy products