From his liquid soap factory – the only one in Europe – located between Annemasse (Haute-Savoie) and Lake Geneva, Xavier Thiry sees far, very far. His gaze is on Asia, “That we have seen rebound very quickly, from November 2020”, and to the United States, where it would like to establish itself. For the boss of Laboratoire Provendi, who not only produces liquid soap, but works as a manufacturer for multiple brands of hygiene and beauty products, the development of the company goes more than ever through the international market.
“The opportunities have never been so obvious, he explains. Currently, I make about 40% of turnover, or 9 million euros, in exports. I would like to increase this share to 55%, and reach 13 or 14 million in export turnover. “ To achieve this, this SME of 75 employees, supported by fifteen temporary workers, invested 2 million euros to double the capacity of the plant.
For French companies, the strong economic recovery at work both in Asia and in the United States can become a lever with a view to relaunching themselves after the crisis. The incredible dynamism of the Chinese market is proof of this. According to figures released Monday, June 7, imports have grown by more than 50% over one year, the largest increase recorded in ten years.
“The cost of freight has increased by 20%”
The United States, thanks to a forced vaccination campaign, a particularly accommodating monetary policy and the 1,900 billion dollars (1,560 billion euros) of stimulus, should know “A strong acceleration in growth”, says William De Vijlder, chief economist of the BNP Paribas group. Credit insurer Euler Hermes did the math. After a drop of 8% in 2020, world trade in goods and services should rebound, to + 7.7% in 2021 and + 6% in 2022. For companies in France, this dynamic could translate into an increase 8% of exports in 2021 and 5.7% in 2022, i.e. 59 billion euros to be gained in the first year and 47 billion in the second.
Sales of insurance, consulting, research and development services abroad are well oriented
A tempting prospect, even if it is still struggling to materialize, as evidenced by the foreign trade figures of France, published Tuesday, June 8. The recovery in demand did boost exports by 400 million euros, but imports grew almost twice as fast, causing the deficit to plunge. On the other hand, trade in services is rebalancing a little: sales of insurance, consulting, research and development services abroad are well oriented.
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