As the ongoing “French invasion” continues apace – snapping properties up all over the country – over 14,000 people were expected at a business conference held in Nice on Friday to get round the table over Portugal’s “investment opportunities”.
Talking to Lusa news agency before the event, business organiser Carlos Vinhas Pereira revealed: “We have 15 people who want to buy hotels and villas in the area of the Algarve, as well as some French people who want to invest in manufacturing, because they have factories in Tunisia but the country is no longer stable.”
Upbeat over French interest was Pedro Marinho, Portugal’s vice consul in Marseille.
“French investment is essential. France has always been one of the principal investors in Portugal and these kinds of initiatives are organised to increase investment in our country.”
In terms of tourism, the French are the tourists who spend most in Portugal, he added.
Particularly under discussion were opportunities in rural tourism, real estate, the role of the new Franco-Portuguese industrial chamber of commerce, and the fiscal advantages for non-habitual residents (see our story: http://portugalresident.com/golden-reasons-behind-growing-%E2%80%9Cfrench-invasion%E2%80%9D).
