Category: Business

Tunisia, represented by President of the National Chamber of Women Entrepreneurs (CNFCE) Leila Belkhiria, will chair the Women in Business Network (WiB) for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region (EMEA). The announcement was made during a WiB Networking event organised on Friday at the UTICA seat by the WiB in collaboration with the CNFCE, in the presence of representatives of the 8 associations of businesswomen from the network's member countries: Tunisia, Algeria, Lebanon, Egypt, Germany, Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire.. The event aims to foster collaboration and networking between businesswomen, entrepreneurs and young female leaders who share a unified vision of progress. The key goal of the event is to bring network members together, providing them with the knowledge, expertise and connections they need to boost the growth of their businesses and professional lives, and to empower participants to identify and create new opportunities, both at home and abroad. The Women in Business network supports (pr ospective) women entrepreneurs from MENA and Africa with expertise and a strong network in fulfilling their potential. Women in Business offers women entrepreneurs, self-employed women and those interested in founding their own businesses the unique opportunity to network with each other and with mentors, associations from the region and partners from the business world, to exchange experiences, to develop competencies and business contacts and thus to create lasting economic perspectives and equal opportunities.

A Tunisian-Italian tourism event will be held in March 2024 in Tunis, with the participation of a high-level Italian delegation led by Italian Minister of Tourism Daniela Garnero Santanchè, said the Tourism Ministry on Friday. A memorundum of understanding (MoU) will be inked during this event so as to boost cooperation in the tourism field. The decision to organise this event was made during a working session held on Friday in Milan between Minister of Tourism and Handicrafts Mohamed Moez Belhassine and his Italian counterpart. Belhassine is on a 3-day visit to Italy (December 1-3) as part of Tunisia's participation in the Artigiano in Fiera 2023 international fair, held December 2-10 in Milan. Discussions also focused on the potential for bilateral cooperation in the tourism and handicrafts sectors, notably in matters of communication and promotion of the two destinations.

In a lacklustre market, the Tunindex benchmark edged up 0.4% during the week of November 27 to December 1, 2023, settling at 8,575.74 points, thereby bringing its year-to-date performance to +5.9%, as reported by broker Tunisie Valeurs. With no block trades, only TND 11.5 million were traded, equivalent to a daily volume of TND 2.3 million. BH Assurance emerged as the most traded stock, capturing 16.5% of the total market turnover. // Market Analysis // The GIF FILTER stock took the lead. The filter specialist's shares posted the best performance of the week, surging by 13.2% to TND 0.430, with a trading volume of TND 13,000. UADH was among the top performers of the week, with the automotive dealer's shares up by 13.2% to TND 0.430, in a trading volume of TND 13,000 throughout the week. However, Best Lease ended the week at the tail of its competitors, with shares down by 19.6% to TND 1.760, in a negligible trading volume of TND 2,000. BH Assurance was the most actively traded stock of the week, attra cting transactions worth TND 1.9 million, or 16.5% of the total trading volume. // Market News // Attijari Bank: Increase in reserved capital for active and permanent staff The Extraordinary General Assembly of Attijari Bank approved an increase in the bank's capital exclusively reserved for its active and permanent staff and that of its related subsidiaries. This involves a cash increase totalling TND 6,290,015, raising the capital from TND 203,709,985 to TND 210,000,000. This is achieved by issuing 1,258,003 new shares with a nominal value of TND 5 each, plus an issuance premium of TND 34,100 per share, i.e. an issue price of TND 39,100 per share. These new shares will be fully paid up on subscription and will carry dividend rights as of January 1, 2024. Disclosure of major transactions in TPR and SOTUVER shares CEO of TPR and SOTUVER Karim Bayahi said he had acquired TND 1 million worth of SOTUVER shares and TND 1.5 million worth of TPR shares from the Compagnie Financière d'Investissement.

Tunisia has so far issued 22 certificates of origin under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement for exports of chemical and agri-food products to Cameroon and Tanzania, said Deputy-Director at the Directorate for Cooperation with African Countries and Organisations in the Trade and Export Development Ministry Fakhri Bouzayen. Speaking at the 8th export morning held on Friday at the CEPEX seat, under the theme: "AfCFTA and COMESA agreements: State of Play and New Prospects for Tunisian Exports," Bouzayen added that the certificate of origin, which is considered a key component for the effective entry into force of the agreement, will help exporting companies make the most of the reductions in customs duties which are due to be withdrawn from January 1, 2026. The rules of origin currently cover 87.7% of tariff lines, he indicated, adding that the sectors not fully covered by these rules are textiles and clothing, motor vehicles, tractors, bicycles and other land vehicles, their spare par ts and accessories. Tunisia, which had joined the Guided Trade Initiative (GTI) launched on October 7, 2022 by the AfCFTA Secretariat, is one of the first 8 African countries (Egypt, Ghana, Cameroon, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania and Mauritius) which are preparing to launch the AfCFTA under this initiative. Taking the floor, Head of the Customs and Capacity Building Division at the AfCFTA Secretariat Chawki Jaballi affirmed that the implementation of the AfCFTA agreement will be complex, given the large number of member countries and their various stages of economic development. There is need to fill the gaps in trade information and to work with the private sector so as to ensure the success of the AfCFTA, he pointed out. Jaballi further indicated that the effective implementation of the AfCFTA will require, in addition to financing, the facilitation of investment in trade-enhancing infrastructure in order to remove supply-side constraints and ensure that the benefits of market access are fully achieved. Jaba lli outlined on the occasion, a set of operational tools for the AfCFTA, such as the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), the AfCFTA Rules of Origin Manual and the Mechanism for Reporting, Monitoring and Eliminating Non-Tariff Barriers. The AfCFTA aims to eliminate trade barriers and stimulate intra-African trade, to boost trade in value-added production in all service sectors of the African economy and to promote industrialisation, job creation and investment in a bid to step up Africa's competitiveness in the medium and long term. For his part, CEPEX CEO Mourad Ben Hassine pointed out that the untapped potential in Africa is estimated at about US$1.2 billion. Untapped export opportunities account for about 61% in North Africa (US$754 million), 22% in West Africa (about US$270 million) and 8% in East Africa (US$94 million). "The African continent currently offers many opportunities, especially as Sub-Saharan Africa's share of Tunisian exports at the end of October 2023 will account for only 2.6%," he added.

The stock market closed Friday's session down by 0.01% to 8575.7 points with very low trading amounting to just TND 1.3 million, said stock market broker Tunisie Valeurs. ICF was the best performer of the session, posting a 3.2% in share price to TND 71.900, generating a limited flow of TND 10 thousand. SOTUVER shares performed well, rising by 2.5% to TND 12.200. Trading in the stock was relatively modest, amounting to TND 105 thousand. Ennakl Automobiles shares were the worst performer, dropping by 5.9% to TND 11.100, in a meagre flow of TND 63 thousand. Attijari Bank shares were among the session's biggest losers, posting a 2.3% drop to TND 43,000, generating only TND 72 thousand in trading. SAH Lilas topped the volume charts, with shares up by 0.2% to TND 8.050, supplying the market with TND 154 thousand.

The Assembly of People's Representatives (French: ARP) adopted Thursday the 2024 budget of the Employment and Vocational Training Ministry with 124 votes in favour, 6 against and 5 abstentions. The budget amounts to TND 999.589 million against TND 990. 512 million in 2023 (+1%). Ministry expenditure is as follows: TND 434.676 million for payroll expenses, TND 503.4 million for interventions, TND 50.409 million for management expenses and TND 11.500 million for investment.

Tunisia joined the list of beneficiary countries of Canada's General Preferential Tariff (GPT) scheme - a programme which offers duty-free or preferential market access to imports of most products from a list of designated countries- the Export Pomotion Centre (French: CEPEX) said. Tariff preferences (reduced tariffs or duty-free treatment) cover all products, except for textile and clothing, footwear, sensitive agricultural goods (including supply managed commodities) and some steel products. Average data for 2019-2021 show Canada's imports under the GPT amounted $332 million. These imports would have otherwise been subject to an average Most Favoured Nation (MFN) Tariff of 5 %. The number of eligible developing countries under the General Preferential Tariff (GPT, introduced in 1974 and renewed every ten years, stands at 106, including 49 least developed countries (LDCs), accorfing to the Government of Canada website. Since the last renewal, which took effect in 2015, beneficiary countries may be gradu ated out of the GPT programme once they meet either one or two development-based criteria: Two consecutive years of classification as an upper-middle or high income economy by the World Bank, or a minimum global exports share of 1 percent for two consecutive years according to World Trade Organization (WTO) data.