Made in… where? A secondary factor

A SYMBOLIC POWERHOUSE, YET GEOGRAPHICALLY FRAGMENTED

The internal combustion engine is inextricably linked with the Industrial Revolution. Its placement under the bonnet of a moving vehicle remains one of the era’s most striking symbols. In 1878, Amédée Bollée commercialised La Mancelle, the first mass-produced vehicle powered by a steam engine. In 1886, Carl Benz’s Benz Patent-Motorwagen became the first vehicle powered by a single-cylinder petrol engine. In the space of nearly 150 years, from the Ford Model T to the Ferrari Testarossa by way of the Golf GTI, the motor car has fundamentally shaped societal evolution. Given that its symbolic status is beyond doubt, the Observatoire Cetelem sought to determine whether the automobile remains synonymous with economic power. The findings reveal that the automotive industry, cited by a quarter of respondents, ranks only fourth among sectors deemed to best embody economic power.

Germany and Japan express this sentiment most strongly as the only countries where respondents put the automotive sector in top spot, with half of those surveyed doing so. In France, only 18% of respondents view it as the most powerful sector, heavily favouring the energy sector instead (40%). With 37% of overall responses, the energy sector takes a commanding lead across all surveyed nations as a whole. This view is strongest in Italy and Belgium (49% and 46% respectively). The energy crisis of recent months has undoubtedly played a role in this outcome. More broadly, individual countries tend to highlight whichever sector enjoys the highest international profile at home: tourism in Spain, technology in Japan and China, and agriculture in Poland.

A VEHICLE’S COUNTRY OF ORIGIN AROUSES LITTLE INTEREST

Looking more closely at the data reveals that this downplaying of the automotive sector’s economic clout is coupled with a relative indifference towards where a vehicle is actually built. In fact, country of origin is the factor drivers care about least when choosing a car (23%). The Japanese once again demonstrate a streak of nationalism, a recurring theme throughout this report, with a mere 9% paying any heed to where a vehicle is produced. While views across all other countries are broadly aligned, Portugal and the Netherlands show the greatest disinterest in the country of manufacture.

EQUIVALENCE OF ORIGIN AND ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS

More broadly, when it comes to economic or financial criteria, drivers generally do not single out any particular feature to assess a vehicle. Ownership structure, brand origin and manufacturing location are weighed with equal importance. The China–US–Japan trio, a grouping that recurs throughout this study, attaches the greatest importance to these factors, contrasting sharply with another trio, Belgium–Netherlands–Portugal, which pays them the least attention.

HEAD OFFICE AND ORIGIN: BROADLY ALIGNED

For most brands, the country of origin coincides with group headquarters. This dynamic also translates into proportionally strong domestic sales, particularly for Ford and BYD. With its head office based in the Netherlands, Stellantis group brands stand apart, as sales in their host country are naturally negligible.

KEY FIGURES

71 millions vehicles sold worldwide in 2026
2,42% of the active population in France is employed by the automotive sector
1 in 4 people believes the automobile best embodies a country’s economic power
1 in 4 people will disregard country of manufacture when choosing a vehicle, the lowest-ranked criterion