Britain will suffer as France pulls up the drawbridge

France is drifting towards protectionism, says Matthew Lynn. And Britain could end up being the biggest loser.

The state of the French economy goes from bad to worse. Output is flatlining, unemployment remains stubbornly high, inward investment is collapsing, and exports are falling.

Some countries would respond by reforming their economy. But the French are instinctive protectionists. When they are in trouble, they pull up the drawbridges and blame someone else. It's already happening. Takeovers are being blocked. The government is protecting BNP Paribas from US fines. Far-right politician Marine Le Pen is riding high in the polls on a platform of trade barriers.

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Matthew Lynn

Matthew Lynn is a columnist for Bloomberg, and writes weekly commentary syndicated in papers such as the Daily Telegraph, Die Welt, the Sydney Morning Herald, the South China Morning Post and the Miami Herald. He is also an associate editor of Spectator Business, and a regular contributor to The Spectator. Before that, he worked for the business section of the Sunday Times for ten years. 

He has written books on finance and financial topics, including Bust: Greece, The Euro and The Sovereign Debt Crisis and The Long Depression: The Slump of 2008 to 2031. Matthew is also the author of the Death Force series of military thrillers and the founder of Lume Books, an independent publisher.