French presence in Hungary

France is a major investor in Hungary, its presence has tripled in this country between 2001 and 2011. The scope of this presence is described in the study published by departments at the French Embassy and the Hungarian-French Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

The bilingual (Hungarian and French) booklet, presented in Budapest this Monday by the French Ambassador to Hungary, Roland Galharague and the President of the Hungarian-French Chamber of Industry and Commerce (CCIFH), Antoine Guego, says France is the third largest investor in Hungary with a total investment of approximately EUR ten billion in the past two decades.

Ambassador Galharague stressed that the French-owned and France-related companies are actually Hungarian firms with predominantly Hungarian employees, they strengthen the Hungarian economy, contribute to the volume of Hungarian exports and enhance Hungarian society with the corporate social responsibility activities. Five of these companies are in the Top25 in Hungary.

The CCIFH President added that companies with French ownership in Hungary employ about 50,000 people and they are here as long-term and not opportunistic investors. Many of them have signed the health and environmental protection charters initiated by CCIFH.