French Economy Minister: Terrorism did not stop our economy
Emmanuel Macron was speaking at the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where he is in attendance to promote the nation's tech startups.
"We had a very short-term slowdown in tourism, leisure, and retail industries," the former investment banker at Rothschild said in an interview with Business Insider.
"It was largely comparable with what the US experienced in 2001," he added, referring to the September 11, 2001, attacks on US soil.
In the aftermath of the November attacks in France that left 130 people dead, Air France reported $54 million in lost revenue. According to Macron, the deleterious effects were short-lived.
"The macroeconomic impact on France was limited even though it fell during the crucial end-of-year period," Macron said.
The minister added that he was incredibly impressed with the way his country's citizens and industry pulled together in reaction to the difficult times.
"This attack was an attack against democracy and to threaten our people to stop globalization," he said. "The story of fear is not our story."
He added: "The economy and the willingness of the French people to mobilize is absolutely critical."