Italy confirms its position as Tunisia’s leading supplier for the period from January 1 to May 31, 2024, thus consolidating a position that has lasted for several years.
According to figures from the National Institute of Statistics (INS), Tunisian imports from Italy amounted to 3.962 billion dinars (around 1.182 billion euros) during the first five months of the current year, down 10.1% compared to the same period of the previous year but still ahead of other competing countries.
Tunisia’s exports to Italy amounted to 5.060 billion dinars (around 1.510 billion euros), an increase of 12% compared to the same period last year.
The balance of trade is therefore 1.098 billion dinars (around 328 million euros) in favor of Tunisia.
These data confirm a trend observed in recent years which has seen Rome help Tunis overcome its economic and financial difficulties without losing its market share. The strengthening of relations between the two countries since the coming to power of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who visited Tunisia four times in less than a year, is not unrelated to this bilateral dynamic from which many benefit. of sectors.
Among the main products exported by Italy to Tunisia are energy raw materials (refined petroleum), metals, fabrics, hides and skins, electrical equipment, plastics and plastic products, engines, generators and transformers, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, installations and machines.
Among the main products imported by Italy from Tunisia are articles of clothing and footwear, parts and accessories for vehicles, oils and greases, engines, generators and transformers, plastic articles, products chemicals and fertilizers, steel products and crude oil.
It therefore appears obvious that there is significant traffic in the refining-transformation of raw materials or semi-finished products into products from Italy to Tunisia.
Tunisia’s first trading partner remains France, with an exchange value of 9.232 billion dinars (around 2.755 billion euros). French exports to Tunisia recorded a value of 3.393 billion dinars (around 1.012 billion euros), down 3.2% compared to the same period of 2023.
Regarding French imports from Tunisia, over the period January-May 2024, there was a slight decrease of 0.2% compared to the first five months of last year, with a negative trade balance for France with a value of 2.446 billion dinars (or 730 million euros).
Overall, Tunisia’s exports to the European Union, which represent 70.3% of the country’s total exports, increased by 2.4%. Exports increased in particular to Italy (+12%), Spain (+39%) and Belgium (+6.2%).
