Agriculture: EU & Morocco Hail Amendment of Their Association Agreement

Morocco and the European Union commended on Thursday in Brussels the signing of the amendment of the protocols of their Association Agreement, saying the move aims at strengthening the agricultural partnership between the two parties.

The two sides said the new farm deal reinforces the multidimensional partnership between Rabat and Brussels. The EU has extensive ties with Morocco on trade, political and security matters.

The European bloc is Morocco’s largest trading partner, accounting for 59,4 pc of its trade in 2017. 64,6 pc of Morocco’s exports went to the EU, and 56,5 pc of Morocco’s imports came from the EU.

Morocco is the EU’s 22nd trading partner representing 1,0 pc of the EU’s total trade with the world. Total trade in goods between the EU and Morocco in 2017 amounted to €37,4 billion.

The EU’s imports from Morocco are dominated by machinery and transport equipment (€6,0 billion, 40,4 pc), agricultural products (€3,4 billion, 23,0%), and textiles and clothing (€2,9 billion, 19,3 pc).

The EU’s exports to Morocco are dominated by machinery and transport equipment (€8,4 billion, 37,7 pc), followed by fuels, metals and minerals (€5,2 billion, 23,4 pc), textiles and clothing (€1,8 billion, 8,1 pc), and agricultural products (€1,6 billion, 7,3 pc).

Two-way trade in services amounted to €8,8 billion in 2016 with EU imports of services representing €5,2 billion and exports €3,6 billion.