France

Credit Agricole's factoring and lease finance businesses showed strong resilience in the first quarter of the year, the French bank reported

Despite their limited exposure to the American collapse, BNP Paribas and Axa have begun to suffer from the effects of the global downturn, posting significant losses.

The French government plans to underwrite credit insurance for risky companies in a bid to prevent a collapse of confidence in lending between businesses.

After several years of stability and consistency in the global markets, the sub-prime real estate crisis that occurred midway through 2007 sent a shockwave through the world’s banking and financial sector.

Over the first nine months of 2008 Crédit Agricole S.A. registered 16% growth in factoring

Coface, the credit insurance division of French bank Natixis, has reported a 13.6 percent growth in factoring.

The European Commission has dropped an enquiry into a French state loan guarantee that it feared would help Areva win a contract to build the first new European reactor in more than 10 years.

Credit Agricole SA has no plans to alter its lending policy for SMEs.

Standard Poor's affirmed its 'AA-' long-term counterparty credit and insurer financial strength ratings on the core operating entities of Euler Hermes.

Fitch Ratings announced it has affirmed the insurer financial strength of the major insurance entities of the Coface group at AA+.