The trade deficit has deteriorated over the whole of 2022, according to the Foreign Exchange Office. After standing at more than 199.2 billion dirhams in 2021, it reached more than 311.6 billion dirhams (MMDH) at the end of the past year. This reflects an increase of 56.5% compared to the previous year.
As noted by the Foreign Exchange Office in its monthly indicators of foreign trade for the year 2022, imports increased by 39.6% (+209.157MDH) over the twelve months of the year to stand at 737, 7 billion dirhams instead of 528.6 billion dirhams a year earlier.
At the same time, exports stood at 426.1 billion dirhams for the same year 2022 once morest 329.4 billion dirhams in 2021, corresponding to an increase of 29.4% equivalent to more than 96.7 billion dirhams, said the Exchange Office.
Foreign trade indicators show that the increase in imports of goods is explained by the increase in purchases of all product groups.
According to analysts from the Foreign Exchange Office, over the past year, the energy bill has more than doubled to reach 153.5 billion dirhams, mainly following “the increase in purchases of diesel and fuel oil (+ 40.3 billion dirhams) driven by the rise in prices which almost doubled (10,283 dirhams/t once morest 5,195 dirhams/t), and to a lesser extent by that of quantities (+7.2%)”.
Imports of semi-finished products jumped by 46.4%, due to the growth in purchases of ammonia which amounted to 21.4 billion dirhams once morest 6.9 billion dirhams a year earlier.
As for imports of food products, the figures show that they increased by 44.9%, equivalent to more than 26.9 billion dirhams, following the increase in wheat supplies which almost doubled under the effect of rising prices. by 40.8%.
At the same time, the quantities imported increased by 28.7%; while barley purchases also posted an increase of +2.5 billion dirhams (3.2 billion dirhams at the end of 2022 once morest 743 million dirhams a year earlier).
It should be noted that imports of raw products increased by 49.9%, following the increase in purchases of raw and unrefined sulfur which reached more than 8 billion dirhams.
With regard to exports of goods, the Foreign Exchange Office stressing that these jumped by 29.4% (+96,696 MDH) reaching 426.1 billion MAD once morest 329.4 billion MAD a year earlier. And to specify that “this increase concerns the exports of all sectors, at their head, phosphates and derivatives, the automobile sector and that of agriculture and agri-food”.
Regarding phosphates and derivatives, indicators suggest that sales of these increased by 43.9% to 115.5 billion dirhams at the end of 2022 once morest 80.3 billion dirhams at the end of 2021.
It should be noted that “this increase is attributable to the increase in exports of natural and chemical fertilizers (+27.8 billion dirhams) due to the price effect up by 74.4% (8.326DH/T at the end of 2022 once morest 4.775DH /T at the end of 2021)”, according to the explanations of the public body which reports, on the other hand, a drop in the quantities exported of 11.8%.
For the year 2022, it also appears that sales in the automotive sector increased by 33% (+27.6 billion dirhams) amounting to 111,289 million dirhams.
According to the Foreign Exchange Office, this increase concerned sales in the construction segment (+40%), those in the wiring segment (+28.9%) and, to a lesser extent, those in the interior segment. vehicles and seats (+3.7%), she noted, adding that the automotive sector positioned itself as the second best exporting sector behind phosphates and derivatives at the end of the past year.
Analyzing the evolution of exports in the agricultural and agri-food sector, the Office notes that they amounted to 81.2 billion dirhams in 2022 once morest 69.9 billion dirhams during the previous year, which represents an increase of 16, 2% (+11.3 billion dirhams).
The simultaneous increase in sales of the food industry (+19.9% or +7,266MDH) and those of agriculture, forestry and hunting (+11.4% or +3,579MDH), explain this development.
According to the foreign trade indicators for 2022, over the whole of 2022, textile and leather exports grew by 20.7% (+7.5 billion dirhams) mainly due to the increase sales of ready-made clothing (+21.9% or +4.9 billion dirhams), knitwear (+12.5% or +944 million dirhams) and shoes (+32% or +857 million dirhams).
Alain Bouithy
