France Trade Gap Widens More Than Expected

France’s trade deficit widened to €5.8 billion in February 2026 from an upwardly revised €2.0 billion in February and above the expected €2.4 billion. Exports fell 0.9% month-on-month to €51.0 billion, weighed down by lower shipments of agricultural products (-2.8%), mechanical and electrical equipment (-0.5%), and natural hydrocarbons (-25.7%), while gains were seen in refined petroleum (+15.8%) and other industrial products (+1.7%). By region, exports fell to Asia (-8.1%) and the European Union (-0.6%), but rose to Africa (+5.6%), the Americas (+6.4%), and the Middle East (+2.2%). Meanwhile, imports increased 5.0% to €58.5 billion, driven by higher purchases of mechanical and electrical equipment (+5.7%), transport equipment (+7.6%), and natural hydrocarbons (+23.1%), though refined petroleum imports fell (-5.4%). Imports grew from Africa (+10.0%), the Americas (+7.7%), and Asia (+5.0%), while flows from the Middle East (+1.2%) and the EU (+3.3%) rose moderately.

France’s trade deficit narrowed sharply to €1.8 billion in January 2026, from a revised €4.3 billion in December and well below the expected €4.6 billion gap. This marked the smallest deficit since July 2009, as exports rose 0.7% month-on-month to €53.4 billion, supported by gains in transport equipment (+0.8%), natural hydrocarbons and electricity (+16.2%), and publishing and communication products (+43.3%). By region, exports increased to the European Union (+3.8%), Europe outside the EU (+0.2%), and the Americas (+0.2%), but declined to Asia (-5.8%), Africa (-5.1%), and the Middle East (-36.9%). Meanwhile, imports fell 3.6% to €55.3 billion, driven by lower purchases of transport equipment (-9.6%), natural hydrocarbons and electricity (-10.6%), and other industrial products (-2.2%). Purchases declined from most regions, including Asia (-6.7%), Europe outside the EU (-6.1%), the Americas (-3.9%), and Africa (-17.0%), while imports from the EU edged down slightly (-0.6%).

France’s trade deficit widened to €4.8 billion in December 2025 from a revised €4.0 billion in November. Imports rose 3.0% month-on-month to €57.9 billion, led by transport equipment (+10.3%), mechanical and electronic equipment (+2.1%), and refined petroleum products (+8.0%). By region, imports increased from the Middle East (+24.6%), Asia (+8.6%), the Americas (+5.6%), and the EU (+0.3%), but fell from Africa (-4.1%). Meanwhile, exports grew 1.8% to €53.1 billion, supported by mechanical and electronic equipment (+6.3%), agri-food products (+2.4%), and natural hydrocarbons (+11.1%), partially offset by declines in refined petroleum products (-10.2%), transport equipment (-2.2%), and agricultural products (-2.5%). Regionally, exports rose to the Middle East (+27.1%) and Asia (+12.1%), but fell to the Americas (-3.8%), Africa (-3.3%), and the EU (-0.4%). For the full year, the trade gap narrowed slightly to €69.6 billion from €79.0 billion in 2024.