The Influences Affecting French Assets Abroad Prior To 1914

Antoine Parent (1, 2, 3) , Christophe Rault (4, 5)

1 BETA - Bureau d'Économie Théorique et Appliquée
2 MATISSE - UMR 8595 - Modélisation Appliquée, Trajectoires Institutionnelles et Stratégies Socio-Économiques
3 UP8 - Université Paris 8 Vincennes-Saint-Denis
4 UEVE - Université d'Évry-Val-d'Essonne
5 EUREQUA - Equipe Universitaire de Recherche en Economie Quantitative

In this study we show that French foreign investment from the end of the nineteenth century until the eve of the First World War was driven by economic and financial considerations. This refutes the hitherto accepted thesis that French capital exports were motivated by diplomatic and political factors. By using economic modeling that combines microeconomic and econometric approaches, we show that the geographic distribution of French financial flows was consistent with rational economic behavior.

Mots clés: French capital exports; Political factors

Domaines: Economies et finances

Antoine Parent, Christophe Rault. The Influences Affecting French Assets Abroad Prior To 1914. Journal of Economic History, 2004, 64 (2), pp.328-362. ⟨10.1017/S0022050704002724⟩. ⟨hal-00278982⟩