In trade with China, France lags far behind Japan and the United States, and even lags behind the United Kingdom and Italy  China's GDP growth rate this year is expected to reach 7 5% to 7 8%, compared with the first seven months of 2001  France Trade with China only increased by 2
7%, while the trade of China with other European countries, who are France's competitors, increased by an average of 10%
France's trade with China lags far behind other developed countries.