Morocco Imports Record 420,000 Tons of French Wheat in January

According to data from the Refinitiv firm, the finding made during the month of January 2020 shows that this is the highest score achieved in 6 years. This proves that French wheat is the most sought after in Morocco. Despite the Russian competition, which has recorded strong progress in recent years, 420,000 tons of wheat arrived from France for the Moroccan market in January, notes Challenge.

Morocco could need around 600,000 tons for the last three months of the 2019/2020 campaign, according to Refinitiv. Last December, the government approved, in the Council of Government, a draft decree suspending the import duties on soft wheat and its derivatives for the period from January 2 to April 30, 2020.

The objective of this decision, according to the Minister of Economy, Finance and Administration Reform, Mohamed Benchaâboun, is "to ensure a normal supply of the domestic market at reasonable prices, at a time when FOB (free on board) prices of soft wheat are rising and vary between $12 and $15 due in particular to the surge in prices of this commodity on the international market since the beginning of October 2019. There is also the import duty rate set at 35% currently."

For their part, French wheat exporters estimate that Morocco will import 3.8 million tons of soft wheat for the 2019-2020 crop year, in order to meet its needs.