Aviation Tunisair growth slows as costs rise Tunisair’s revenue increased by only 3 percent year on year to TND695 million ($224 million) in the first half of 2024, as fuel costs rose and its market share shrank. Passenger numbers went up by 2 percent to 1.17 million, compared to 1.15 million a year ago, the state-run Tunis Afrique Presse reported. Average revenue […] July 25, 2024
Economy Tunisia approves $54m loan from Italy Tunisia has officially approved a €50 million ($54 million) loan from Italy to support its state budget for the current financial year. The loan was originally signed in April. It will be repaid over 40 years with a 31-year grace period and a zero percent interest rate. Tunisia’s current account deficit narrowed to 2.3 percent […] July 24, 2024
Opinion Economy Macron gambled and lost. Now bond markets will have their say The election result puts France on a collision course with global capital markets and the EU July 9, 2024
Artificial Intelligence Qatar’s Ooredoo signs AI deal with chipmaker Nvidia US chipmaker Nvidia has signed a deal with Qatari telecommunications provider Ooredoo Group to bring its artificial intelligence technology to five countries in the Middle East, the companies announced on Sunday. Ooredoo will be the first company in the region to offer direct access to Nvidia’s AI and computer chips to its customers in Qatar, […] June 24, 2024
Analysis Trade Diplomacy and trade to fore as China woos GCC leaders It’s quite a coup. Hu Jintao (still with us) must be feeling vindicated. The heads of four Arab states are in Beijing to attend the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum, which Hu founded in 2004 to bring together China and the Arab League. Xi Jinping, Hu’s successor as leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), will […] May 28, 2024
Renewable Energy Tunisia signs $6.5bn green hydrogen investment deal Tunisia has signed a memorandum of understanding with French company TotalEnergies and Austrian group Verbund to produce green hydrogen (H2V). The first phase of the project, which is expected to cost €6 billion ($6.5 billion), aims to produce 200,000 tonnes of H2V per year, generating 5,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy and 2,000MW of electrolysis […] May 28, 2024
Agriculture Tunisia’s honey production hit by global warming Almost three-quarters of beekeepers in Tunisia have seen their honey production curtailed by climate change. The North African country has 305,000 hives tended by 13,000 beekeepers, according to Hassene Ben Salem, chief engineer at the Office of Livestock and Pastures. But he said extreme weather conditions have almost halved honey production, from an average of […] May 22, 2024
Economy Soaring olive oil exports help Tunisia balance books Tunisia’s soaring olive oil exports have almost doubled to close to $1 billion in just five months, helping it claw back its current account deficit. However the increased revenues merely “paint over the cracks” and the country is still probably heading towards a sovereign default, according to an economic expert. Tunisia’s current account deficit narrowed […] May 17, 2024
Opinion Economy In times of conflict, spare a thought for the non-Gulf economies Confidence and growth have taken hits – but the tide is turning for some nations, if not all May 3, 2024
Energy Tunisia signs $1.2bn deal to improve energy imports Tunisia has signed a deal with the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation, which will disperse $1.2 billion in financing to the North African country over the next three years. The money will be used to fund energy imports, according to a statement from Tunisia’s Department of Economy. Tunisia is facing a financial crisis and has […] May 1, 2024
Aviation Tunisair reports ‘steady’ revenue rise in first quarter Tunisian national flag carrier Tunisair has reported a “steady” start to the year with a 5.6 percent increase in revenue for the first quarter. The airline is attempting to restructure in order to resolve legacy financial difficulties and refresh its fleet. Revenues rose to TND 316 million ($100 million) at the end of March, according […] April 29, 2024
Finance EU reveals total aid to North Africa to combat migration The European Union provided €673 million ($718 million) in funding to four North African countries from 2021-23 to help the quartet reduce what it calls irregular migration to the 27-member bloc, official data shows. Last year about 270,000 “irregular migrants” arrived in the EU via sea crossings, 64 percent more than in 2022. Crossings from […] April 28, 2024
Renewable Energy Tunisia-Italy power project gets $285m investment The Tunisian Electricity and Gas Company (STEG) has revealed plans to invest about €266 million ($285 million) to complete the Tunisian-Italian Elmed Interconnector Project, a 220km power line connecting the two countries. The investment will fund the Tunisian side of the project, which includes laying a 100km submarine power cable worth €125 million and the […] April 26, 2024
Agriculture Tunisia secures $520m in loans to attack food crisis The World Bank has approved loans worth $520 million to address Tunisia’s food security challenge, but experts are calling for the government to devise a new long-term policy. A loan of $300 million will supplement the Emergency Food Security Response Project, which aims to minimise the impact of four consecutive years of drought in Tunisia, […] March 22, 2024
Economy EU throws Tunisia a financial lifeline with $163m grant The European Union has handed Tunisia a €150 million ($163 million) grant to support economic reforms and fiscal stability as the North African country attempts to fend off a financial crisis. Almost $4 billion in external debts are due for repayment this year, up 40 percent on 2023. Although Tunisia managed to pay an €850 […] March 5, 2024
Transport Saudi Arabia loans $55m for Tunisian rail renewal Saudi Arabia has signed a $55 million loan deal with Tunisia to finance the renewal of the North African country’s rail network. The railway is used to transport phosphate, a sector that makes up around 4 percent of Tunisia’s GDP and 15 percent of the country’s exports. Tunisia plans to produce eight million tonnes by […] February 23, 2024
Economy Tunisia debt repayment reaching ‘crunch point’ Just days after Tunisia announced it had cleared its debts from 2023, an expert is warning the country remains at real risk of a sovereign default, with extensive repayments due to creditors over the next two years. Finance minister Sihem Nemsia revealed earlier this week that the North African country had settled all domestic and […] January 26, 2024
Economy Tunisia pays off all 2023 debt Tunisia has repaid all of its 2023 domestic and external debts despite constraints on public finance and difficulties in accessing foreign funding, according to finance minister Sihem Nemsia. It had been feared that the North African country was headed towards a default on its debt repayments. Speaking at the opening of a debate on the […] January 23, 2024
Infrastructure Gulf telcos sign deal to create $2bn tower company Telecom operators Ooredoo and Zain Group on Tuesday said agreements have been signed to create the largest tower company in the Middle East and North Africa. The cash and share deal, which also involves Dubai-based Tasc Towers Holding, will establish a company comprising 30,000 telecom towers in Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Iraq, Algeria and Tunisia, with […] December 5, 2023
Analysis Industry Future is rosy for Mena phosphate producers With Morocco and Saudi Arabia now holding the bulk of the world’s high-quality, accessible phosphate rock reserves, the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region is a major centre for the phosphate mining industry’s future growth, analysts say. Morocco alone holds around 70 percent of the world’s total reserves of phosphate rock, the raw material […] November 17, 2023
Sustainability Droughts could cost Tunisia $1bn annually Water shortages in Tunisia could cost the North African country up to $1.3 billion annually by 2030, according to a report from the World Bank. For the sixth year in a row, below-average rainfall impacted the country’s agricultural production. The sector’s value fell 9 percent in real terms in the first half of this year […] November 7, 2023
Finance Tunisia to maintain fuel and food subsidies in 2024 Tunisia expects its economy to grow by 2.1 percent in 2024, up from 0.9 percent in 2023, and plans almost the same subsidies for fuel, electricity and food while raising taxes for banks, hotels and liquor firms, a bill on its budget showed on Tuesday. The bill included no reference to an agreement with the […] October 18, 2023
