From the Chinese Anime and Comics portal Southcn comes an article analyzing France's comics market, the article goes on to look at China's own market for comics, and compares it to its European counterparts.

A Summary of France's Comic Book Market

Abstract: France's comic book market is one of the most important comic book markets in the world, with 4,313 different comic book titles (including reprints) and around 77 magazines dealing specifically with comic books published in 2007. Last year also saw comic book sales of over 40 million there, totalling around 400 million Euros. Of 2007's 3,313 new works published in France, 253 were Chinese comic books. If China were to try to expand their portion of France's comic book market they would meet with a few cultural barriers; crucially because the work of Chinese artists differs greatly from the three mainstream comic books styles of Europe, Japan, and the US, and it is hard for many vendors to categorise them. Although all readers approve of the high-quality artwork and originality of Chinese comics, many feel that the storylines are inferior to their Japanese or European counterparts.

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The French association of comics, critics and journalists, Association des Critiques et des journalistes de Bande Dessinée, has released its annual report on the state of the comics industry in France. Below is a partial translation of the report by guest translator Loup Solitaire:

2007, VITALITY AND DIVERSITY
A year of comic books in the European French-speaking territory

by Gilles Ratier, secretary-general of the ACBD
French to English translation by Loup Solitaire, mangavore
Adapted by Anthony Andora

I. Production: growth continues for the 12th consecutive year: 4,313 comic books were published in 2007 (of which 3,312 strict novelties), a growth of 4.4 %.
II. Publishing: more players on the market, which is a sign of vitality: 254 publishers published comic books in 2007, while only 17 groups account for 74 % of the production.
III. Optimization: 90 series enjoyed enormous mises en place and continued to rank among the best sellers, all book genres included.
IV. Translation: 1,787 foreign comic books (of which 1,371 from Asia and 253 from USA) were translated: a slight decline of 0.67 % from last year.
V. Adaptation and media influence: comics continued to adapt literary works (96 books in 2007), while inspiring other means of expression more and more.
VI. Magazines: presence of 77 specialized magazines in kiosks and bookstores while comics found a new creative field in internet publishing.
VII. Deceases and accolades: 13 French-speaking creators died in 2007 and some 128 works dating from more than 20 years have been republished.
VIII. Gratification: despite everything, 1,357 comic book authors continue, all the same, to make a living from their occupation.

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The top 15 manga (March - April 08) in France according to BdZoom:

1. Fullmetal Alchemist (16)
2. Naruto (35)
3. One Piece (42)
4. Nana (18)
5. Bleach (26)
6. Naruto (34)
7. Negima! (12)
8. Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle (17)
9. Berserk (24)
10. Death Note (8)
11. Dofus (8)
12. Naruto (33)
13. Detective Conan (56)
14. Parmi eux (19)
15. Get Backers (26)

The top 15 manga (February - March 08) in France according to BdZoom:

1. Naruto (34)
2. Death Note (8)
3. Samurai Deeper Kyo (37)
4. Satan 666 (14)
5. Naruto (33)
6. One Piece (41)
7. Bleach (25)
8. Mär Omega (1)
9. Death Note (1)
10. Naruto (1)
11. Sugar Sugar Rune (7)
12. Death Note (7)
13. Death Note (2)
14. Naruto (2)
15. Naruto (32)

ANN reports that France's Center for International Studies and Research (CERI) will be hosting a 2-day manga conference (PDF) on March 15th and 17th respectively:

Researchers who will present their work during the conference include Matt Thorn, an anthropologist at Japan's Kyoto Seika University; Yokohama National University's Jaqueline Berndt; and Go Ito, whose 2005 book Tezuka is Dead was among the first to criticize moe and other anime or manga genres that are driven by character designs, rather than narratives.

The top 15 manga (January - February 2008) in France according to BdZoom:

1. Naruto (34)
2. One Piece (41)
3. Bleach (25)
4. Naruto (33)
5. Berserk (23)
6. D. Gray-Man (8)
7. Death Note (7)
8. Naruto (32)
9. Get Backers (25)
10. Naruto (1)
11. Übel Blatt (4)
12. Parmi eux (18)
13. Naruto (2)
14. Naruto (31)
15. Rose Hip Rose (1)

From BdZoom comes the top 15 "Bandes Dessinées" (French-style comic books) for the week ending 2/20:

1. Astérix (12)
2. Okko (4)
3. Les rugbymen (6)
4. Les Schtroumpfs (26)
5. Lanfeust des étoiles (7)
6. Jeremiah (28)
7. Le guide du zizi sexuel
8. Star Wars, Chevaliers de l'ancienne république (3)
9. XIII (19)
10. La quête de l'oiseau du temps : avant la quête (2)
11. Les femmes en blanc (30)
12. XIII (18)
13. Tanâtos (2)
14. Conte de fées à l'Elysée
15. Merlin (9)

From BdZoom comes the top 15 "Bandes Dessinées" (French-style comic books) for the week ending 2/13:

1. Astérix (12)
2. Les Schtroumpfs (26)
3. Lanfeust des étoiles (7)
4. Jeremiah (28)
5. L'histoire secrète (10)
6. XIII (19)
7. XIII (18)
8. Merlin (9)
9. La quête de l'oiseau du temps : avant la quête (2)
10. Les femmes en blanc (30)
11. Bunker (2)
12. Lou ! (4)
13. W.E.S.T. (3)
14. Donjon monsters (12)
15. Le complexe du chimpanzé (2)

From BdZoom comes the top 15 "Bandes Dessinées" (French-style comic books) for the week ending 1/27:

1. Astérix (12)
2. Les Schtroumpfs (26)
3. Lanfeust des étoiles (7)
4. Jeremiah (28)
5. L'histoire secrète (10)
6. XIII (19)
7. XIII (18)
8. Merlin (9)
9. W.E.S.T. (3)
10. Bunker (2)
11. Canardo (17)
12. La quête de l'oiseau du temps : avant la quête (2)
13. Le complexe du chimpanzé (2)
14. Les femmes en blanc (30)
15. Lou ! (4)

From BdZoom comes the top 15 "Bandes Dessinées" (French-style comic books) for the week ending 1/20:

1. Lanfeust des étoiles (7)
2. Les Schtroumpfs (26)
3. W.E.S.T. (3)
4. Astérix (12)
5. XIII (19)
6. XIII (18)
7. La quête de l'oiseau du temps : avant la quête (2)
8. Les femmes en blanc (29)
9. Ric Hochet (74)
10. Les naufragés d'Ythaq (5)
11. Le chat (14)
12. Lou ! (4)
13. Kaamelott (2)
14. Kid Paddle (11)
15. Le donjon de Naheulbeuk (4)