The value of foreign investment fell 1.3% in the first half of 2013, to 939 million
Tunisian dinars (MTD) from 951.1 MTD in the same period of 2012, according to statistics of the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA).
Foreign direct investment (FDI) accounted for 823.2 MTD of this amount while 115.8 MTD were generated from portfolio investment.
Foreign investment climbed 21.1% compared the first six months of 2011 and fell 13.9% compared to 2010.
Sectoral distribution of investment reveals that the services sector has recorded the largest decrease compared to 2012 (-21.8%), followed by the industrial sector (-5%) and energy (-4.3%).
A slight recovery was noted in the manufacturing industries in June 2013, mostly in the areas of electrical and electronic industries, plastics and food industry.
According to the website of FIPA, the new investments have contributed to the creation of 89 new businesses compared with 71 in the first half of 2012 and the extension of 246
already installed units against 112 in the same period in 2012.
In terms of jobs, 2,610 new positions were created during that period (first half), 47% of which in the textile and clothing industry.
