21 November 2012 Last updated at 04:42 ET
The French government said the economy was sound and reforms were on track
Has France's Socialist President, Francois Hollande, just carried out an economic U-turn by reaching out to big business?
The question is the talking-point of Paris since the government announced its "competitiveness pact" a week ago.
A response to growing concerns about the decline of France's industrial base, the pact's main measure is a 20bn-euro (£16bn; $26bn) tax credit to the corporate sector.
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