Morocco trade deficit shrinks 7% on tourism and lower imports

Morocco's annual trade deficit contracted by 7.3 per cent to 286 billion dirhams ($28.6 billion) in 2023, helped by a drop in energy imports and higher tourism revenue, the foreign exchange regulator said in a monthly report. Imports fell 2.5 per cent from a year earlier to 715 billion dirhams, while exports increased by 0.2 per cent to 429 billion dirhams, the regulator said, adding that remittances from Moroccans abroad and automotive industry exports also helped to improve the trade deficit.

Morocco's energy imports dropped 20.4 per cent to 122 billion dirhams after a drop both in demand and prices in the international market. Wheat imports stood at 19.3 billion dirhams, down 25.3 per cent, while ammoniac imports - key for fertiliser production - fell by 58 per cent to 8.8 billion dirhams. Morocco, which has the world's largest phosphate reserves, reported a 34 per cent decrease in exports of the mineral and its derivatives, including fertilisers, to 76 billion dirhams.

Home to Stellantis, opens new tab and Renault, opens new tab production plants, Morocco reported a more than 27 per cent gain in automotive sector exports to a record 141 billion dirhams. Tourism revenue also scaled new peaks, jumping 11.7 per cent to 104 billion dirhams from a record 14.5 million visitors to the country last year. Key to Morocco's inflow of hard currency, remittances from Moroccans abroad reached a record 115 billion dirhams, up 4 per cent from 2022.