The visit between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and French President Francois Hollande has proved quite fruitful. Wednesday, they signed a number of deals worth 18 billion euros ($25 billion). The meeting marks the 50th year of full diplomatic ties between the two countries.
As Hollande said during a joint press conference, “Eighteen billion euros of contracts — that is jobs, growth and, most of all, significant prospects for the coming years.” The largest of the deals was a Chinese order for 70 Airbus planes that will be worth $10 billion. This will include 43 mid-range A320 planes and 27 long-haul A330s.
In addition, Airbus Helicopters and China’s Avicopter are creating a deal to jointly produce 1000 civilian helicopters over the next 20 years. While France has lagged behind many of its European neighbors in trade and investments with China, they are using this as an opportunity to catch up.
Hollande told Xi on Wednesday that Paris had a “duty… to re-balance trade between our two countries”.
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