Exports from Morocco’s automotive industry are expected to grow by 33.7% to MAD 52.6 billion ($5.2 billion) in 2022, according to Morocco’s central bank, Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM). In its latest report on monetary policy, BAM forecasts the exports to grow by 10.5% to MAD 58.1 billion ($5.7 billion) in 2023. Morocco is Africa’s first passenger car manufacturer and the country’s industry is relatively growing each year, with car sales exceeding 160,000 units in 2021 and creating over 220,000 direct jobs. Meanwhile, the BAM report highlights that revenues from foreign direct investment (FDI) are expected to represent 3% of Morocco’s gross domestic product (GDP). BAM also expects the country’s exports of phosphate and derivatives to rebound by 43.4% to MAD 115.1 billion ($11 billion) due to the expected rise in prices. The export flow, however, is expected to fall by 10.8% in 2023 to MAD 102.7 billion ($10 billion). Morocco holds around 75% of the world’s reserves of phosphate rock, a key ingredient in fertilizers.
In addition to phosphates, exports of the agricultural and agri-food sector are expected to improve by 6.5% to reach MAD 74.2 billion ($7.4 billion) this year, and MAD 75.2 billion ($7.5 billion) the year after. Meanwhile, imports are expected to increase by 24.2%, driven mainly by a 61.6% increase in the energy bill. Morocco’s imports’ growth is expected to stand at 0.3% in 2023, due in particular to the 7.8% increase in the import of consumer goods and a 9.2% decrease in the energy bill to MAD 111.2 billion ($11 billion). As the country lifted its COVID travel ban on February 7 to give a new impetus to the tourism sector after suffering from constant losses, BAM forecasts travel revenues to grow from MAD 34.3 billion in 2021 ($3.4 billion) to 70.9 billion dirhams ($7 billion) in 2023.