Imports: 20.4% drop in energy bill in 2023

HIbapress

Imports of energy products into Morocco reached 122 billion dirhams (MMDH) in 2023, down 20.4% compared to 2022, according to the Office des Changes.

Imports of diesel and fuel oils show the biggest drop and alone explain more than half of the decrease in supplies of energy products, the Office specifies in its annual report on Morocco’s foreign trade.

Similarly, imports of semi-finished products fell by 10.5% due to the drop in imports of ammonia (-12.6 billion dirhams), chemical products (-3.2 billion dirhams) and paper, cardboard and various products (-2.7 billion dirhams).

Supplies of raw products also contributed to the overall decline in imports, showing a decrease of 27.9% resulting mainly from the decline in imports of raw and unrefined sulfur (-10.8 billion dirhams).

For their part, imports of finished equipment products stood at 161.7 billion dirhams, up 14.4% compared to 2022. They are mainly driven by purchases of devices for cutting or connecting electrical circuits and resistors (+3.9 billion dirhams) and wires, cables and other insulated conductors for electricity (+2.4 billion dirhams). Imports of finished consumer products continue to rise and reach 158 billion dirhams in 2023, thanks to the increase in purchases of passenger cars (+3 billion dirhams) and their parts and pieces (+6.7 billion dirhams).

Concerning imports of food products, they increased by 3.3%, a slower rate than the previous year.