French companies are more attracted to India than China and investments in the country could increase several times over the coming years, French Ambassador in India Francois Richier said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to France next month will intensify the growing ties between Indian and French companies, he said, adding that the ease of doing business initiatives launched by the government were acting as a catalyst.
“Every year French companies invest about €1 billion in India. It is 6 per cent of France’s total investment. China, which has about four times higher GDP than India, gets only 7 per cent of France’s total investment,” Richier said, adding that it clearly showed that French companies were more attracted to India.
The French Ambassador was speaking at a seminar on ‘Indo-French companies making in India’ jointly organised by the Embassy of France and industry body FICCI.
Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) Secretary Amitabh Kant, who spoke on the occasion, said that 38 of the 40 top companies in France had investments in India.