Tunisian Jeans makes way to US market, world’s second largest importer

Tunisia’s jeans exports to the US market, the world’s second-largest importer of jeans, saw a 69.4% increase in number of pieces and 84.3% in value in 2021 compared to 2020, with 366 thousand pieces worth $9.33 million.
The average price of the Tunisian Jeans trousers was 25.5 dollars in 2021, or an 8.77% growth of its average price in 2020, estimated at $23.44, the Textile Technical Centre (CETTEX) said in an analysis of the US Jeans market.
With 50 states and 330 million consumers, US Jeans’ imports have shown remarkable growth in value and in pieces of 31.8 and 30% respectively over 2020.
In 2021, the US imported this product mainly from Bangladesh, Mexico, Vietnam, China, Pakistan and Cambodia. These countries together cover 80% of the US market share in jeans.  
A definite opportunity for Tunisia
The U.S. market represents a definite opportunity for the textile and clothing sector in Tunisia, whose access today is hampered by customs duties of 17%, the CETTEX added.
If a preferential agreement is signed, the Tunisian sector could get 3% of the total US market share of jeans (+.74%) and generate a positive dynamic of exports and of job creation.
According to this hypothesis, the value of exports will be around $108 million and the number of pieces will be around 13.67 million. This will create almost 15,000 direct jobs and 22,500 indirect jobs.
These jobs would go to the regional development zones since the coastal zones are already saturated.
If Tunisia manages to achieve these results, boosted by a preferential agreement with the USA, it could achieve two points of growth, estimates CETTEX.
However, such an approach depends on diplomatic and economic support to pursue the initiative launched in 2016 by the APPAREL GROUP, according to the same source.