.jpg) Serge Boscher, head of Invest in France Agency, poses in the agency’s Seoul office last Wednesday. / Yonhap |
By Cho Jin-seo
The head of France’ foreign investment promotion offered tax credits and other benefits for Korean firms investing in his country, saying that the imbalance in cross-border investment between the two countries has reached an ‘unacceptable’ level.
“It’s a pity for me that at present we only have 30 Korean companies in France. You have 200 French companies in Korea. There is imbalance in a certain way,” said Serge Boscher, the head of the Invest in France Agency in an interview with Business Focus last week in Seoul. “I’m here to explain that France has never been as attractive as today as a destination for investment.”
Wine and sun
It is probably the image of France as a country of fashion, tourism, wine and cheese that makes Korean tech firms afraid of making R&D investment in heavier industries such as electronics, cars and energy, but the country is actually one of the most advanced industrial powers in the world, Boscher said.
“We are an industrial country, but it’s not well known,” he said. “We are known for the French way of life — wine and gastronomy — and we are the best country to attract tourists. But we also have 39 Fortune 500 companies in France, compared to 37 in Germany and 29 in the U.K.”
Currently, LG has the largest presence in the R&D sector in France for a Korean firm. It employees more than 100 researchers in its facility near the Charles de Gaulle Airport, and this is “a strong message” for LG to have made such a choice, Boscher said. During his stay in Seoul, he was to meet SK Group, which is active in the renewable energy sector.
As Boscher pointed out, France firms in Korea are much more active than Korean firms in France. Renault operates a major car factory here under the name of Renault Samsung Motors. The country also provided technology for the initial versions of the KTX bullet train via Alstom. Carrefour used to own a large network of retail stores as well, though it has now left.
Most recently, Saint-Gobain, a glass producer, signed a joint venture with Hyundai Heavy Industries. The venture, Hyundai Avancis, had a ground-breaking ceremony last month in Cheongwon, North Chungcheong Province for a factory that makes solar energy cells. It is also building another factory in Germany.
Boscher also hinted that Korean firms can take advantage of France’s close links to countries in Africa and the Middle East in advancing into those markets, which are sometimes difficult to approach.
“Chinese companies choose France to attack the African market,” he said. “France is at the center of EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa).”
He said his agency recognizes that South Korea has a much stronger link with the U.S. and one reason is that the country offers various scholarship programs for elite Korean students to study in America. He said that he would be discussing with the French embassy here about expanding scholarship programs.
Suspicion lingers
Making cross-border investment decisions sometimes borders on politics and emotions and this has played against France. In Koreans’ mind, the best-known Korean investment in France was the humiliation Daewoo Group had in a bid on the electronic appliance maker Thomson in 1996.
Daewoo tried to buy the debt-ridden Thomson in France to become the largest TV maker in the world at the time. But the bid was rejected by the French government because of union objections and political criticisms — media reports of the time said that the French public did not want to see Thomson in the hands of foreigners. This amplified the image of France as a close-minded, nationalistic and arrogant country to do business in.
Boscher acknowledged the case but he demanded a forward-looking attitude is needed now.
“I know that story, but it was past. Think about the future. Think about our partnership,” he said. The free trade agreement between the EU and South Korea, to go in effect from July step by step, will provide good business opportunities for both Korea and France, he said.
Another remorse Koreans have toward France is the looting of royal manuscripts by the French navy in 1866, which left a deep scar on the national psyche. Part of the books was returned last month in the form of a “renewable lease.” Boscher said that he was not aware of the case, yet he made a note of it during the interview. “But in 1950s, the French people defended your country. So it’s kind of composition,” he said.
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