US businesses getting more optimistic over French economy
PARIS (AP) - U.S. businesses are more eager to invest and hire in France than they have been in years - but want to see more progress first in President Emmanuel Macron's efforts to reduce labor costs and simplify taxes.
Macron's pro-business promises and a long-awaited uptick in the French economy are making U.S. investors more optimistic, according to a report released Thursday by the American Chamber of Commerce in France.
That's a big shift.
But turning that optimism into jobs will depend on Macron's labor reforms, the report said.
Robert Vassoyan, chief executive of Cisco in France, said: "The key now is not to disappoint."
The report showed similar hope across sectors.
U.S. companies employ about half a million people in France and are among the country's biggest investors.