Morocco’s Trade Deficit Widens 15.5% in 2021 as Imports Outpace Export Growth

This increase in the trade deficit is justified by a 24.7% increase in imports against a 25% increase in exports, the central bank notes, noting that the coverage rate is 62.3%.

This growth in imports is attributable to the increase in the energy bill and the rise in the prices of consumer goods purchases, while exports, for their part, increased by 25%, mainly thanks to sales of phosphate and derivatives and the automotive sector, the same source specifies.

As for travel receipts, they have slightly decreased, from 36.4 billion in 2020 to 34.3 billion dirhams in 2021. For their part, transfers from Moroccans residing abroad (MRE) increased by 37.5%, to a record level of 93.7 billion.

This exceptional performance helped to limit the widening of the current account deficit, which stood at 29.1 billion, or 2.3% of GDP instead of 1.2% a year earlier, BAM points out, adding that receipts related to foreign direct investment (FDI) increased to 2.5% of GDP.