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Trade agreement talks start between UAE and Tunisia

By Chris Hamill-Stewart
The UAE is Tunisia's biggest trading partner among the six countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council, with non-oil trade valued at $350 million in 2024 Pixabay
The UAE is Tunisia's biggest trading partner among the six countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council, with non-oil trade valued at $350 million in 2024
  • Ministers in virtual meeting
  • Tunisia’s biggest GCC trade partner
  • Deal would be UAE’s 27th Cepa

The UAE has started negotiations with Tunisia on a bilateral trade and investment agreement.

In a virtual meeting between the two nations’ ministers of trade, officials expressed their commitment to expanding and deepening bilateral relations, the official UAE news agency WAM said.

The UAE and Tunisia will proceed to negotiate specific chapters and provisions covered by a so-called comprehensive economic partnership agreement, or Cepa.

If and when signed, the deal will be the UAE’s 27th Cepa.

The UAE is Tunisia’s biggest trading partner among the six countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council, with non-oil trade valued at $350 million in 2024, up almost 8 percent on the year before.

The main non-oil products the UAE exports to Tunisia are semi-finished iron, sulphur and raw aluminium, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity.

The UAE signed Cepa agreements with New Zealand, Kenya and Malaysia in January.

In early March, the UAE and the Central African Republic signed a trade deal that is expected to grow bilateral trade between the two countries to more than $1 billion over the next five to seven years.

The emirates’ first Cepa was signed with India three years ago. The two countries are now planning to extend the 10-year trade deal to eight new sectors.

The GCC is made up of the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and Qatar.

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