Moroccan Expats and Foreign Investors Own 28% of Casablanca Stock Exchange

Moroccans living abroad (MREs) and foreign investors precisely hold 27.8% of the total capitalization of the Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE), or 156 billion dirhams (MMDH), according to the Moroccan Capital Market Authority. The total value of the CSE is now 561 MMDH. However, the share of MREs and investors has decreased compared to the previous year when they owned 30.3% of the total capitalization of the CSE, but it remains higher than the lowest point recorded in 2012 at 26.5%. This decline is explained by the reduction in the prices of listed shares held by foreign investors, due to the 19.75% drop in the benchmark index of the Casablanca Stock Exchange in 2022.

Who are the main foreign owners of companies listed on the CSE? They are mainly investors from the Middle East and Europe. They represent more than 93% of foreign investment and 26% of market capitalization. Investors from the United Arab Emirates and France dominate, with investments in the communications, electricity, banking, oil and gas, construction and building materials sectors, says the Moroccan Capital Market Authority, adding that in terms of investment, the amounts invested by foreigners in listed shares decreased by 25.3% to reach 156 billion dirhams in 2022. Their share in market capitalization has nevertheless increased over the past five years. It has gone from 33% to around 27.8%, after a period of stagnation between 2018 and 2020.

As for the total amount of investments by foreigners and Moroccans living abroad in financial instruments, no change has been made compared to 2021, reaching 2,071 billion dirhams at the end of last year.