France Launches a Stimulus of 100 Billion to Revive Economy

France intends to spend 100 billion euros, equivalent to 118 billion dollars, to extricate its economy from a severe downturn caused by the Corona pandemic, indicating the renewed efforts made by President Emmanuel Macron to push a supportive reform schedule for companies.

An official said ahead of the official launch, which takes place later on Thursday, that the stimulus package is equivalent to 4% of GDP, which means that France is pumping public money into the economy more than other large European economies as a percentage of GDP.

Officials said the stimulus package allocates 35 billion euros to increase the economy’s competitiveness, 30 billion to more green energy policies, and 25 billion to support jobs.

The plan focuses mainly on supporting companies and is expected to last two years. But it does little to directly support consumer demand, France’s traditional engine of growth, in contrast to a 130 billion-euro stimulus Germany launched in the spring that includes a cut in value-added tax on sales.