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Algeria Lends $300 Million to Tunisia

A general view shows a empty street in Sidi Bou Said, an attractive tourist destination, amid a coronavirus lockdown, Tunis, Tunisia, April 1, 2020. (Reuters)
A general view shows a empty street in Sidi Bou Said, an attractive tourist destination, amid a coronavirus lockdown, Tunis, Tunisia, April 1, 2020. (Reuters)
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Algeria Lends $300 Million to Tunisia

A general view shows a empty street in Sidi Bou Said, an attractive tourist destination, amid a coronavirus lockdown, Tunis, Tunisia, April 1, 2020. (Reuters)
A general view shows a empty street in Sidi Bou Said, an attractive tourist destination, amid a coronavirus lockdown, Tunis, Tunisia, April 1, 2020. (Reuters)

Tunisia said Tuesday it had received a loan from Algeria, the day before a visit by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

The official journal said that President Kais Saied had signed off a deal reached on December 9 for "a loan worth $300 million", around 266 million euros.

Tunisia's public finances have been battered by a decade of political instability, low investment and structural problems, with debts approaching 100 percent of GDP and unemployment at 18 percent.

Tunisia's economy has grown at just 0.6 percent a year since its 2011 revolution, while inflation has surged at six percent a year.

An unwelcoming business environment has discouraged investors.

The Covid-19 pandemic made the situation in the North African country far worse, slashing jobs in the vital tourism sector, high commodity prices have hurt reserves, and a drought has battered farmers, AFP reported.

Tunis has received economic aid from the European Union and is seeking its fourth aid program in 10 years from the International Monetary Fund, aiming to receive a loan of nearly $4 billion before the end of the year.

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China Expands Visa-free Entry to More Countries in Bid to Boost Economy

Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
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China Expands Visa-free Entry to More Countries in Bid to Boost Economy

Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

China announced Friday that it would expand visa-free entry to citizens of nine more countries as it seeks to boost tourism and business travel to help revive a sluggish economy.
Starting Nov. 30, travelers from Bulgaria, Romania, Malta, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Estonia, Latvia and Japan will be able to enter China for up to 30 days without a visa, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.
That will bring to 38 the number of countries that have been granted visa-free access since last year. Only three countries had visa-free access previously, and theirs had been eliminated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The permitted length of stay for visa-free entry is being increased from the previous 15 days, Lin said, and people participating in exchanges will be eligible for the first time. China has been pushing people-to-people exchange between students, academics and others to try to improve its sometimes strained relations with other countries, The Associated Press reported.
China strictly restricted entry during the pandemic and ended its restrictions much later than most other countries. It restored the previous visa-free access for citizens of Brunei and Singapore in July 2023, and then expanded visa-free entry to six more countries — France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia — on Dec. 1 of last year.
The program has since been expanded in tranches. Some countries have announced visa-free entry for Chinese citizens, notably Thailand, which wants to bring back Chinese tourists.
For the three months from July through September this year, China recorded 8.2 million entries by foreigners, of which 4.9 million were visa-free, the official Xinhua News Agency said, quoting a Foreign Ministry consular official.