Foreign exchange reserves of the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT) now cover 160 days of imports for the first time since April 2010.
According to daily data from the BCT, net foreign exchange assets on December 24, 2020 amounted to the equivalent of 22.9 billion dinars, up 4 billion dinars compared to the same date last year, representing 53 additional days of imports.
This growth in foreign currency assets is the result of the combined effect of the decline in cumulative external debt service (-1.3 billion dinars) and the increase in expat remittances (+539.4 million dinars) to a record of 5.55 billion dinars until 20 December.
Moreover, the increase in the level of foreign exchange reserves was supported by the contraction of the current account deficit following the decrease in the trade balance deficit, which fell by 34% to the end of November to 11.7 billion dinars.
