Made in France share of French consumption, Digi Mart USA News (France): The 2027 French presidential campaign has put questions of national sovereignty, reindustrialization and job creation at the center of economic debate. However, it is difficult to measure the weight of “made in France” because of the integration of companies into global production chains, according to the economic studies institute Rexecode in a note published Tuesday, November 3.
The institute’s indicator differs from the “made in France” label placed on a product. That label applies to any product whose last substantial transformation took place on French soil, even if its components were not necessarily produced in France.
By contrast, the Rexecode indicator measures what share of the final price of a product or service corresponds to work and activity carried out in France, regardless of where the final assembly takes place.
Over the long term, the share of “made in France” in French purchases has declined. It stood at 80.4% in 2010 and fell to 77.5% in 2024.
In Rexecode’s words, “out of 100 euros, 77.50 euros pay for labor, capital or are taxed in France, with the rest produced abroad.”
The decline over roughly fifteen years has not been linear, with fluctuations linked in part to the energy context, according to Rexecode. The main long-term driver is the internationalization of supply chains, not a change in the structure of consumption.
Still, the share has risen slightly over the past two years after reaching a low of about 74% in 2022.
Several factors explain the recent upturn. Part of it reflects lower prices for energy imports after their surge in 2022 linked to the war in Ukraine, which mechanically raises the French share.
Another part reflects the recovery of French industrial production starting in 2023.
The share varies widely by sector. Rexecode reported that construction recorded a “made in France” share of 96% in 2024, compared with only 41% in manufacturing.
Due to price movements, the energy, water and waste sector has seen significant fluctuations. Over the long term, 80% of the 64 activity branches surveyed saw their “made in France” indicator decline over the past fifteen years.
France is not an isolated case. Spain, Germany and Italy saw their “made in national” share fall by 2 percentage points over the same 2010 to 2024 period, according to the study.
Still, the decline has been most pronounced in France. Europe as a whole cannot match the domestic shares of the world’s largest economies.
In 2024, the United States showed a “made in USA” share of 89.5%, while China reached 88.1% in Chinese value added. The share has grown over the long term for both, with a stronger increase in China (+4.1 points versus +1.4 points).
Rexecode highlights the “multiplier effect” of a high domestic share. “Each euro of industrial value added generates another in the rest of the economy,” the institute said.
A factory producing 1 billion euros of value added generates 2 billion euros in total in the French economy, counting what it buys from suppliers and what those suppliers buy in turn. Similarly, one industrial job generates an additional 1.2 jobs in the rest of the French economy.
Rexecode also cites decarbonization as a benefit. With a carbon intensity of GDP still below that of its neighbors thanks to low-carbon electricity, producing in France is less polluting than importing products from abroad in every sector, although that advantage has narrowed in recent years.
