Tunisia Witnesses Slight Improvement in Tourism Indicators

People walk past shops in the Medina, in the Old City of Tunis, Tunisia, July 27, 2021. Picture taken July 27, 2021. (Reuters)
People walk past shops in the Medina, in the Old City of Tunis, Tunisia, July 27, 2021. Picture taken July 27, 2021. (Reuters)
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Tunisia Witnesses Slight Improvement in Tourism Indicators

People walk past shops in the Medina, in the Old City of Tunis, Tunisia, July 27, 2021. Picture taken July 27, 2021. (Reuters)
People walk past shops in the Medina, in the Old City of Tunis, Tunisia, July 27, 2021. Picture taken July 27, 2021. (Reuters)

Tourism sector revenues in Tunisia have slightly improved and were estimated at around 1.9 billion Tunisian dinars (about $678 million) in the first 10 months of 2021, according to the financial and monetary indicators released by the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT).

Tunisia received about 1.94 million tourists, an increase of 7.2 percent, with a six percent rise in revenues, which may provide a stock of foreign exchange the economy desperately needs during this period.

However, these figures are still far from the records achieved in 2019, when Tunisian tourist facilities received about 9.5 million tourists, with five billion dinars ($1.8 billion) in revenues.

This makes tourism one of the key pillars of the Tunisian economy.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA-Tunisia) recorded a slight decline in the flow of foreign investments into Tunisia. It reported a drop by two percent during the first nine months of 2021, estimated at 1.383 billion dinars ($494 million).

Foreign investments have witnessed sharp fluctuations in recent years.



Oil Edges Up on Strong US GDP Data

A pumpjack brings oil to the surface in the Monterey Shale, California, US April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo
A pumpjack brings oil to the surface in the Monterey Shale, California, US April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo
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Oil Edges Up on Strong US GDP Data

A pumpjack brings oil to the surface in the Monterey Shale, California, US April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo
A pumpjack brings oil to the surface in the Monterey Shale, California, US April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo

Oil prices were up slightly on Friday on stronger-than-expected US economic data that raised investor expectations for increasing crude oil demand from the world's largest energy consumer.

But concerns about soft economic conditions in Asia's biggest economies, China and Japan, capped gains.

Brent crude futures for September rose 7 cents to $82.44 a barrel by 0014 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude for September increased 4 cents to $78.32 per barrel, Reuters reported.

In the second quarter, the US economy grew at a faster-than-expected annualised rate of 2.8% as consumers spent more and businesses increased investments, Commerce Department data showed. Economists polled by Reuters had predicted US gross domestic product would grow by 2.0% over the period.

At the same time, inflation pressures eased, which kept intact expectations that the Federal Reserve would move forward with a September interest rate cut. Lower interest rates tend to boost economic activity, which can spur oil demand.

Still, continued signs of trouble in parts of Asia limited oil price gains.

Core consumer prices in Japan's capital were up 2.2% in July from a year earlier, data showed on Friday, raising market expectations of an interest rate hike in the near term.

But an index that strips away energy costs, seen as a better gauge of underlying price trends, rose at the slowest annual pace in nearly two years, suggesting that price hikes are moderating due to soft consumption.

China, the world's biggest crude importer, surprised markets for a second time this week by conducting an unscheduled lending operation on Thursday at steeply lower rates, suggesting authorities are trying to provide heavier monetary stimulus to prop up the economy.