No French Company Left Russian Market Since 2014 - French Embassy's Economic Department

Not a single French company has left the Russian market since 2014, Patrick Erbs, the head of the economic department of the French Embassy in Russia, said on Friday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 08th February, 2019) Not a single French company has left the Russian market since 2014, Patrick Erbs, the head of the economic department of the French Embassy in Russia, said on Friday.

"France has historic trade, economic, and financial ties with Russia, and they mean a lot to us. No French company has left the Russian market since 2014. When I say that companies remain in the market, I mean that they strengthen their positions and [boost] investment," Erbs said, at a conference of the Franco-Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

He praised Russian-French economic relations, stressing France's respect for Russia as a "global economy" and the fourth biggest economic partner of the European Union.

Erbs also said that Russian-French trade, which experienced a decline in 2014, was actively restoring since 2017, and the trend was likely to continue.

In 2017, Russian-French trade increased by 16.5 percent year-on-year and reached $15.5 billion. The first 9 months of 2018 saw bilateral trade amount to $12.7 billion.