Bastille Day, celebrated on July 14 is the French symbol of the end of the Monarchy and the beginning of the First Republic. We, at Leather Co-ordinator Pakistan, are proud of our French heritage and join the people of France in commemorating this occasion. France is in the midst of transition from a well-to-do modern economy that has featured extensive government ownership and intervention to one that relies more on market mechanisms.
The government has partially or fully privatised many large companies, banks, and insurers, and has ceded stakes in such leading firms as Air France, France Telecom, Renault, and Thales. It maintains a strong presence in some sector, particularly power, public transport, and defence industries. With at least 75 million foreign tourists per year, France is the most visited country in the world and maintains the third largest income in the would from tourism.
France's leaders remain committed to a capitalism in which they maintain social equity by means of laws, tax policies, and social spending that reduce income disparity and the impact of free markets on public health and welfare. France has weathered the global economic crisis better than most other big EU economies because of the relative resilience of domestic consumer spending, a large public sector, and less exposure to the downturn in global demand than in some other countries.
Nonetheless, France's real GDP contracted 2.5% in 2009, but recovered somewhat in 2010, while the unemployment rate increased from 7.4% in 2008 to 9.5% in 2010. The government pursuit of aggressive stimulus and investment measures in response to the economic crisis, however, are contributing to a deterioration of France's public finances.
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