The National French- American Business Summit

From September 22-24, 2021, the French-American Chamber of Commerce hosted its inaugural business summit, which featured over 40 speakers across various industries such as Politics, Auto, Aerospace, Energy, Luxury/Retail, Life Sciences, and more.

The online summit was attended by French-American Chamber of Commerce members, business leaders, and those interested in French-American business relations. The panelists shared how their respective companies have managed to work across the transatlantic throughout the pandemic while enduring Covid related disruptures. Companies have continued to work through the pandemic through automation within the supply chain and individuals on the ground to ensure that needs are fulfilled.

Another important topic at the summit was what companies think of the current relations between France and the U.S. and if the relationship is stable. Relevantly, the summit occurred a week after French President Emmanuel Macron temporarily recalled French diplomats stationed in the U.S. to return to France, in a hasty response to the revelation that the U.S. and not France, would now be furnishing nuclear-powered submarines to Australia. In 2016, France had originally signed a contract with Australia be the supplier of the submarines and considers the new deal with the U.S. to be a betrayal by a close ally. Nonetheless, there has since been an indication that France and the U.S. are working towards reconciliation of their disagreement, as French diplomats are scheduled to return to Washington.

With the submarine controversy in mind as well as past policies implemented by the Trump Administration, such as an import tax on French wine, French companies remarked that they were cautious about how business relations will continue between the two countries under the new Biden Administration. Overall, both panelists and attendees were optimistic that business relations would resume and continue to work favorably for partners in each country.