· Morocco’s trade deficit has shrunk by 11% in the first quarter of this year. The improvement in the trade deficit is attributed to the fall in demand by Moroccan manufacturers due to the slowdown in key European markets. However, Imports continue to outstrip exports.
· The country’s car exports rose by 39% to 22.6 billion dirhams during the period.
Morocco’s trade deficit has shrunk by 11% the first quarter of this year. The improvement in the trade deficit is attributed to the fall in demand by Moroccan manufacturers due to the slowdown in key European markets. However, Imports continue to outstrip exports. In the first quarter, Morocco’s imports stood at 122.4 billion dirhams with exports at the value of 77.2 billion dirhams.
The country’s car exports rose by 39% to 22.6 billion dirhams during the period. COVID 19 has impacted the livelihoods of a large portion of the population which has prompted generous responses from expatriates. Remittances by Moroccan expatriates by the end of March stood at 20.8 billion dirhams, up by 41.8%.
Tourism, the backbone of the economy continues to be affected by coronavirus restrictive measures and travel bans. Travel receipts as a result plunged by 70% to 5.3 billion dirhams. To offset the impact, the government has extended until June an aid package that includes stipends for workers in most hit tourism businesses.
