Algeria to allow private banks, airlines, sea transport firms

Algeria will allow its private sector to set up banks as well as air and sea transport companies for goods and passengers to reduce spending, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said on Tuesday. The move is part of wider reforms by the OPEC member to cope with financial problems caused by a sharp fall in energy export revenues, the main source of state funding for the North African country. “I see no objection to private investors creating air and sea freight and passenger transport (companies), as well as banks,” he told a meeting in Algiers to discuss a plan to revive the economy. The annual bill for goods transport services is estimated at $12.5b, he said. “It is essential to find a solution to this situation,” he told the meeting attended by government officials, businessmen and unions.<br/>