Commodities imports deepen Morocco’s trade deficit up to Feb 2022

Morocco’s trade deficit rose 57% up to February this year, due to a surge of commodities prices in the international market.

Tensions in the black sea and the loss of Ukrainian and Russian commodities and wheat exports sent prices skyrocketing hitting the finances of import-reliant states.

For example, Morocco’s ammonia imports, used in the production of fertilizers, rose from 693 million dirhams in February to 2.92 billion dirhams, while wheat imports jumped 96% to 4.1 billion dirhams.

Amid high demand on fertilisers, Morocco’s phosphates and derivatives exports rose 95.8% to 14.2 billion dirhams.

Aerospace industry exports improved 52% posting record sales of 3.4 billion dirhams, indicating a recovery of demand after the pandemic.

The automotive sector, however, still tops Morocco’s industrial exports at 15 billion dirhams.