Francis Mer

French businessman, industrialist and politician (1939–2023)

Francis Mer
Mer in 2009

Minister of the Economy of France
In office 7 May 2002 – 30 March 2004
President	Jacques Chirac
Prime Minister	Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Preceded by	Laurent Fabius
Succeeded by	Nicolas Sarkozy

Personal details
Born	Francis Paul Mer (1939-05-25)25 May 1939 Pau, France
Died	1 November 2023(2023-11-01) (aged 84) Bourg-la-Reine, France
Alma mater	École polytechnique Mines ParisTech

Francis Mer (25 May 1939 – 1 November 2023) was a French businessman, industrialist and politician. An alumnus of the École polytechnique (class of 1959), and of the École des Mines de Paris, he was a member of the Corps des mines. Mer was hired in 1970 by the Saint-Gobain group. In 1982, he became chairman of the board of Pont-à-Mousson SA. In the 1980s, he joined the Saint-Simon Foundation think-tank.

Following the 1986 legislative elections and the nomination of the conservative Jacques Chirac as Prime Minister, he was nominated as president of the new Usinor group. He was reelected to his position in 1995, upon the group's privatization, and renamed the group Arcelor in 2002. From 2002 to 2004, he was Minister of Finances in Jean-Pierre Raffarin's conservative government.

From 2005, he sat on the board of directors of Vale Inco, which benefited from an important tax rebate to exploit a nickel mine in New Caledonia while he was finance minister.^[1]^[2]

In June 2009, he became chairman of the board of Safran.

In April 2011, due to the change of structure of Safran, Jean-Paul Herteman became CEO and Francis Mer became Vice Chairman.^[3]^[4]

Francis Mer died on 1 November 2023, at the age of 84.^[5]

Notes

^ Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders
^ "La défiscalisation des usines de traitement du nickel en Nouvelle-Calédonie". 3 April 2023.
^ "Safran-group.com, avril 2011, Le Conseil d'administration de la société est composé de 15 membres parmi lesquels quatre représentants de l'État* et deux représentants des salariés actionnaires". Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
^ Les Echos.fr, 21/4/2011, Francis Mer et le "sexe dit faible", Francis Mer, dont les actionnaires ont voté le renouvellement de mandat d'administrateur pour deux ans, devrait être nommé vice-président du groupe en vertu de la nouvelle gouvernance qu'un conseil d'administration doit avaliser dans l'après-midi
^ Sadler, David (1 November 2023). "Francis Mer, Former Minister Of The Economy Under Jacques Chirac, Is Dead". Globe Echo. Retrieved 1 November 2023.

Political offices
Preceded by Laurent Fabius	Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industry 2002–2004	Succeeded by Nicolas Sarkozy

Safran

Subsidiaries

Museum

Musée aéronautique et spatial Safran

People

France portal

v t e Finance ministers of France
Superintendent of Finances (1561–1661) Controller-General of Finances (1661–1791)
House of Valois (1518–1589)	de Beaune (1518–1524) Babou (1524–1544) du Thiers (1544–1546) d'Annebault (1546–1552) Guillart (1552–1556) d'Avançon (1556–1559) de Lorraine (1559–1560) de Cossé-Brissac/d'Ongnyes (1561–1567) de Birague (1568–1570) de Bellièvre (1574–1588) d'O (1588–1589)
House of Bourbon (1589–1792)	d'O (1589–1594) de Béthune (1598–1611) Jeannin (1614–1619) de Schomberg (1619–1622) de La Vieuville (1623–1624) de Champigny/de Marillac (1624–1626) de Ruzé (1626–1632) de Bullion/Bouthillier (1632–1640) Bouthillier (1640–1643) de Bailleul/de Mesmes (1643–1647) d'Emery (1647–1648) de La Porte (1648–1649) d'Emery/de Mesmes (1649–1650) de Longueil (1650–1651) de La Vieuville (1651–1653) Servien/Fouquet (1653–1659) Fouquet (1659–1661) Colbert (1661–1683) Le Pelletier (1683–1689) Phélypeaux (1689–1699) Chamillart (1699–1708) Desmarets (1708–1715) de Noailles (1715–1718) de Caumont (1718–January 1720) de Voyer de Paulmy d'Argenson (1718–January 1720) Law (January–May 1720) des Forts (May–December 1720) de La Houssaye (December 1720–1722) Dodun (1722–1726) des Forts (1726–1730) Orry (1730–1745) d'Arnouville (1745–1754) de Séchelles (1754–1756) de Moras (1756–1757) de Boullonges (1757–1759) de Silhouette (1759) Bertin (1759–1763) de Laverdy (1763–1768) d'Invault (1768–1769) Terray (1769–1774) Turgot (1774–1776) de Clugny (1776) des Réaux (1776–1777) Necker (1777–1781) de Fleury (1781–1783) d'Ormesson (1783) de Calonne (1783–1787) de Fourqueux (1787) de Brienne (1787–1788) Necker (1788–1789) de Breteuil (1789) Necker (1789–1790) Lambert (1790) de Lessart (1790–1791) Tarbé (1791–March 1792) Clavière (March–13 June 1792) Duranthon (13 June–18 June 1792) de Beaulieu (18 June–29 July 1792) Delaville-Leroulx (29 July–10 August 1792) Clavière (10 August–21 September 1792)
First Republic (1792–1804)	Clavière (21 September 1792–1793) Destournelles (1793–1794) Vacant (1794–1795) Faipoult (1795–1796) Ramel-Nogaret (1796–July 1799) Lindet (July–November 1799) Gaudin (1799–1804)
House of Bonaparte (1804–1814)	Gaudin (1804–1814)
House of Bourbon (1814–1815)	Dominique (1814–1815)
House of Bonaparte (1815)	Gaudin (March–July 1815)
House of Bourbon (1815–1830)	Dominique (July–September 1815) Corvetto (September 1815–December 1818) Roy (7 December–29 December 1818) Dominique (December 29, 1818–November 1819) Roy (1819–1821) de Villèle (1821–1828) Roy (1828–1829) de Crouzol (1829–May 1830) de Montbel (May–July 1830) Dominique (July–August 1830)
House of Orléans (1830–1848)	Dominique (August–November 1830) Laffitte (1830–1831) Dominique (1831–1832) Humann (1832–10 November 1834) Passy (10 November–18 November 1834) Humann (18 November 1834–1836) d'Argout (January–September 1836) Duchâtel (1836–1837) Lacave-Laplagne (1837–March 1839) Gautier (March–May 1839) Passy (May 1839–March 1840) de la Lozère (March 1840–October 1840) Humann (October 1840–1842) Lacave-Laplagne (1842–1847) Dumon (1847–February 1848)
Second Republic (1848–1852)	Goudchaux (February–March 1848) Garnier-Pagès (March–May 1848) Duclerc (May–June 1848) Goudchaux (June–October 1848) Trouvé-Chauvel (October–December 1848) Passy (December 1848–October 1849) Fould (October 1849–January 1851) de Germiny (January–April 1851) Fould (April–October 1851) Blondel (October–November 1851) de Casabianca (November–December 1851) Fould (December 1851–January 1852)
House of Bonaparte (1852–1870)	Bineau (January 1852–1855) Magne (1855–1860) La Roquette (1860–1861) Fould (1861–1867) Rouher (January–November 1867) Magne (1867–January 1870) Buffet (January–April 1870) Segris (April–August 1870) Magne (August–September 1870)
Third Republic (1870–1940)	Picard (September 1870–19 February 1871) Buffet (19 February–25 February 1871) Pouyer-Quertier (1871–1872) de Goulard (April–December 1872) Say (December 1872–1873) Magne (1873–1874) Mathieu-Bodet (1874–1875) Say (1875–May 1877) Caillaux (May 1877–November 1877) Dutilleul (November–December 1877) Say (1877–1879) Magnin (1879–1881) Allain-Targé (1881–1882) Say (January–August 1882) Tirard (August 1882–6 April 1885) Clamageran (6 April–16 April 1885) Carnot (16 April 1885–December 1886) Dauphin (December 1886–May 1887) Rouvier (May–December 1887) Tirard (December 1887–April 1888) Peytral (April 1888–1889) Rouvier (1889–1892) Tirard (1892–April 1893) Peytral (April–December 1893) Burdeau (December 1893–May 1894) Poincaré (May 1894–January 1895) Ribot (January–November 1895) Doumer (November 1895–1896) Cochery (1896–1898) Peytral (1898–1899) Caillaux (1899–1902) Rouvier (1902–1905) Merlou (1905–March 1906) Poincaré (March–October 1906) Caillaux (October 1906–1909) Cochery (1909–1910) Klotz (1910–March 1911) Caillaux (March–June 1911) Klotz (June 1911–March 1913) Dumont (March–December 1913) Caillaux (December 1913–March 1914) Renoult (March–June 1914) Clémentel (9 June–13 June 1914) Noullens (June–August 1914) Ribot (August 1914–1917) Thierry (March–September 1917) Klotz (1917–1920) François-Marsal (1920–1921) Doumer (1921–1922) de Lasteyrie (1922–1924) François-Marsal (March–June 1924) Clementel (June 1924–3 April 1925) de Monzie (3 April–17 April 1925) Caillaux (April–October 1925) Painlevé (October–November 1925) Loucheur (November–December 1925) Doumer (December 1925–March 1926) Péret (March–June 1926) Caillaux (June–July 1926) de Monzie (19 July–23 July 1926) Poincaré (July 1926–1928) Chéron (1928–February 1930) Dumont (February–March 1930) Reynaud (March–December 1930) Germain-Martin (December 1930–January 1931) Flandin (January 1931–1932) Germain-Martin (June–December 1932) Chéron (December 1932–January 1933) Bonnet (January 1933–January 1934) Piétri (January–February 1934) Marchandeau (4 February–9 February 1934) Germain-Martin (February 1934–June 1935) Caillaux (1 June–7 June 1935) Régnier (June 1935–1936) Auriol (1936–1937) Bonnet (1937–January 1938) Marchandeau (January–March 1938) Blum (March–April 1938) Marchandeau (April–November 1938) Reynaud (November 1938–March 1940) Lamoureux (March–June 1940)
Vichy France (1940–1944)	Bouthillier (1940–1942) Cathala (1942–1944)
Free France (1941–1944)	Pleven (1941–1942) Diethelm (1942–June 1943) Couve de Murville (June–November 1943) France (November 1943–September 1944)
Provisional Government (1944–1946)	Lepercq (September–November 1944) Pleven (November 1944–January 1946) Philip (January–June 1946) Schuman (June–October 1946)
Fourth Republic (1946–1958)	Schuman (October–December 1946) Philip (December 1946–January 1947) Schuman (January–November 1947) Mayer (November 1947–July 1948) Reynaud (July–September 1948) Pineau (5 September–11 September 1948) Queuille (September 1948–January 1949) Petsche (1949–1951) Mayer (1951–January 1952) Faure (January–March 1952) Pinay (March 1952–January 1953) Bourgès-Maunoury (January–June 1953) Faure (1953–1955) Buron (January–February 1955) Pflimlin (February 1955–February 1956) Lacoste (1 February–14 February 1956) Ramadier (February 1956–June 1957) Gaillard (June–November 1957) Pflimlin (November 1957–May 1958) Faure (May–June 1958) Pinay (June–October 1958)
Fifth Republic (1958–present)	Pinay (October 1958–1960) Baumgartner (1960–1962) Giscard d'Estaing (1962–1966) Debré (1966–May 1968) Couve de Murville (May–July 1968) Ortoli (July 1968–June 1969) Giscard d'Estaing (1969–1974) Fourcade (1974–1976) Barre (1976–1978) Monory (1978–1981) Delors (1981–1984) Bérégovoy (1984–1986) Balladur (1986–1988) Bérégovoy (1988–1992) Sapin (1992–1993) Alphandéry (1993–May 1995) Madelin (May–August 1995) Arthuis (August 1995–1997) Strauss-Kahn (1997–1999) Sautter (1999–2000) Fabius (2000–2002) Mer (2002–2004) Sarkozy (March–November 2004) Gaymard (November 2004–2005) Breton (2005–May 2007) Borloo (May–June 2007) Lagarde (June 2007–2011) Baroin (2011–2012) Moscovici (2012–2014) Sapin (2014–2017) Le Maire (2017–present)