France has historically been an important trade partner for Sweden, and this relationship keeps growing. From a market perspective, France remains one of Sweden’s biggest trading partners (8th in terms of exports and 10th in terms of imports) with the weaker SEK currency exchange of 2023 bolstering Swedish export growth.
For the fifth year in a row, the EY Barometer 2024 declared France as the most attractive country in Europe for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects.
Key findings of the Business Climate Survey 2024 include that confidence in the market and profitability remains strong among Swedish companies in France. 80 per cent of the respondents had a neutral to very good perception of the business climate in France and 82 per cent of Swedish companies reported a profitable financial performance in this year’s report.
The French continue to have a positive view of Sweden, whereby 77 per cent of the participating companies consider that the Swedish brand contributes positively to their businesses.
Please download the report to fully overview the results with a detailed analysis.
ABOUT THE SURVEY
The Business Climate Survey in France is part of the global Business Climate Survey by Team Sweden, based upon the partnership created in 2019 between Business Sweden and Swedish Chambers International.
Its purpose is to increase the understanding of the French business climate from a Swedish company perspective and their subsidiaries in France, as well as their performance in France and the opportunities and challenges they perceive in the French market. In addition, it may serve as a reference in bilateral trade dialogues between Sweden and France.
This year, the survey was sent out to a selected sample of 350 local executives representing Swedish companies in France, 89 of which provided answers. This sample size is sufficient to represent Swedish companies and their subsidiaries in France.
The answers were collected between February 12th and March 4th, 2024. Interviews were conducted later with selected companies to gain a deeper understanding of the factors behind their survey responses.
We would like to extend our most sincere gratitude to the participating companies and partners who have contributed to this report, and we look forward to supporting the continued trade and business development between Sweden and France.
