The trade deficit in industry shrank to TND 1.985,3 million during the first seven months of 2023 from TND 5,769.4 million during the same period in 2022, the Agency for the Promotion of Industry and Innovation (French: APII) said in a July note.

This improvement is mainly driven by higher exports (+15.1%) amounting to TND 33,081.2 million.

Industrial imports grew at a lower pace (1.6%), reaching TND 35,066.6 million.

Higher exports were reported, APII said, in such sectors as textile and clothing (+20.5%), food processing industries (+20.4%), and mechanical and electrical engineering industries (+19.4%). On the other hand, exports of chemical industries dropped 4.6%.

The agri-food sector posted the highest value of imports at the end of July with TND 2,442.6 billion dinars, i.e. up 15.9% compared to the same period in 2022.

The same goes for the textile and clothing sector and mechanical and electrical enginering industries which imports edged up 6.2% (to TND 842.1 million) and 4.4% (to TND 17,881.5 million) respectively.

Imports of chemical industries dropped 11.2% to TND 5,227.2 million.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse