France Economy

In USD exchange-rate terms, France is the sixth largest economy in the world; its economy combines private enterprise (there are nearly 2.5 million registered companies) with government intervention.

Still retaining a major influence over infrastructure sectors, with majority ownership of the railway, electricity sector, aircraft, and telecommunication companies, the French government has been gradually relaxing its control over these sectors since the early 1990s, slowly selling off holdings in insurance and banking, and also in France Télécom, and Air France.

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