As the European Union’s second-largest economy and one of Europe’s leading destinations for foreign investment, France continues to offer significant opportunities for Swedish companies. Strong infrastructure, a highly skilled workforce, a broad industrial base, and growing investments in innovation, artificial intelligence, and the green transition make France an attractive market across multiple sectors.
At the same time, companies report a more demanding operating environment. Political uncertainty, regulatory complexity, labour market regulations, corporate taxation, and geopolitical tensions continue to affect competitiveness and business planning.
Cooperation between Sweden and France remains strong within sectors such as industrial equipment, automotive, defence, life sciences, technology, energy, and sustainable solutions. France’s continued investments in innovation, industrial transformation, sustainability, and digitalisation continue to create opportunities for Swedish companies offering advanced and sustainable solutions.
Competitiveness in France is closely linked to sales competence, cost efficiency, and partnerships/local relationships. The Swedish brand continues to be associated with sustainability, innovation, quality, and reliability.
France is widely regarded as an attractive and stable market with strong infrastructure, high levels of personal safety, and a well-developed business ecosystem. However, companies also point to labour market regulations, corporate taxation, and regulatory barriers as ongoing challenges.
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ABOUT THE SURVEY
To assess the opportunities and challenges faced by Swedish companies in international markets, Team Sweden conducts annual Business Climate Surveys across multiple markets worldwide. This year’s survey in France includes responses from 88 Swedish companies operating in the country. Industrial companies represent a significant share of respondents, while professional services and consumer companies also make up a considerable share. The majority of respondents have been active in France for more than 20 years.
We would like to extend our sincere appreciation to all participating companies and respondents for their contributions to this report. Team Sweden in France hopes that the findings will serve as a basis for continued dialogue with French authorities and other relevant stakeholders.
