TUNIS, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- Tunisia's food trade balance fell to 65.8 percent in the first ten months of this year compared with 71.1 percent in the same period last year, said the country's Ministry of Agriculture Monday.
The ministry said Tunisia's food trade deficit has widened by 44 percent year-on-year at the end of October, with a value of 1,276 million Tunisian dinars (510 U.S. dollars) against 884 million dinars (354 dollars) over the previous year.
According to the State Statistics Institue, the country's trade deficit rose by 23.5 percent in the first ten months of 2017, to a record high of 13.21 billion dinars (5.28 billion dollars).
The main reason is due to the significant increase of food imports - as much as 21.9 percent, said the ministry.
In return, Tunisia's food exports have also increased by 12.7 percent, which is primarily attributed to the revenue growth of date exports. The product has been exported to 80 global destination markets, mainly in Asia, Europe and Latin America.
Olive oil exports in Tunisia dropped by 23 percent this year and export earnings of the product fell by three percent, with a value of 641 million dinars (256 million dollars).
