France to bolster defence industry with €5bn investment plan
On Thursday, France's economy minister, Eric Lombard, announced that defence sector companies will need nearly €5 billion to accelerate production due to the country's enhanced defence efforts.
France's economy minister, Eric Lombard, announced that the public bank Bpifrance will launch a new fund, amounting to approximately £400 million, to finance defence projects. Lombard stated that citizens will be able to invest "for the long term" with a minimum deposit of around £440.
The minister spoke ahead of a meeting scheduled for Thursday at the Ministry of Finance involving private investors and the defence industry.
The goal of the meeting is to secure funds to strengthen the nation's defence. France aims to increase the GDP share of defence spending from the current 2.1% to 3.5% of GDP.
However, the country is already struggling with a high budget deficit and public debt. On Thursday, the head of the central bank, François Villeroy de Galhau, cautioned against excessive spending, emphasising that existing funds should carefully estimate and cover costs for strengthening the defence sector.
