Morocco’s industrial sector began 2026 on a subdued note, with production flatlining and sales volumes retreating across several key branches, according to Bank Al-Maghrib’s monthly business conditions survey for January.
The central bank’s data showed overall capacity utilization settling at 77 percent, a reading that reflects the uneven performance across the country’s main industrial segments. The agri-food and mechanical and metallurgical sectors managed to register production gains, while textiles and leather along with chemicals and parachimicals posted declines, dragging the aggregate into stagnation.
The picture on the sales side was similarly mixed. Agri-food and textile and leather branches recorded increases in volumes sold, while mechanical and metallurgical activity held steady and chemicals and parachemicals contracted. The downturn in overall sales was visible on both the domestic and export fronts, with demand weakening across the board.
Order books told a broadly comparable story. Aggregate orders were flat for the month, masking divergent trends — agri-food and mechanical sectors saw incoming orders rise, while textiles and chemicals recorded a pullback. Order book levels were described as normal overall, though chemicals and textiles reported below-normal backlogs, while agri-food and mechanical sectors held above-average positions.
Despite the soft January reading, business confidence about the near-term outlook remains cautiously optimistic. Industrial operators across most branches expect both production and sales to recover over the following three months. Textiles and leather represent the main exception, with operators in that segment anticipating flat output rather than a rebound.
A note of caution tempers the broader optimism, however, with approximately one in four companies surveyed flagging meaningful uncertainty about the trajectory of production in the months ahead — a reminder that the industrial recovery, when it materializes, may prove uneven.
