Morocco buys more from the world than it sells, and has for decades. The interesting question is not that the goods deficit exists, but how the country pays for it: through remittances, tourism, and foreign investment. This page is a living reference for that whole external balance, the trade gap, what drives it, and the invisible earnings that keep the dirham stable. It is updated after each Office des Changes release.
The Office des Changes, Morocco's foreign-exchange authority, publishes monthly figures on the country's trade with the world. Its releases report cumulative year-to-date totals, so each one covers the year so far rather than a single month.
Over the first seven months of 2026 (January to July), the goods trade deficit reached 244.70 billion dirhams, 26.5% wider than the 193.39 billion recorded in the same period a year earlier. The gap widened because imports grew faster than exports: imports rose 15.9% to 544.05 billion dirhams, while exports rose 8.4% to 299.35 billion. As a result, the share of imports covered by exports slipped to 55.0%, down from 58.8% a year earlier. In absolute terms Morocco bought 74.48 billion dirhams more from the world than it did a year ago, and sold 23.17 billion more.
Counting services alongside goods changes the picture considerably. On the combined goods-and-services account (IMF BPM6 basis) the deficit is 120.70 billion dirhams and coverage is 79.0% rather than 55.0%, because Morocco exports far more services than it imports. That is the single most useful correction to make to any headline about the Moroccan trade gap.
| Flow (Jan-Jul 2026) | Value (MAD) | Change YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Imports of goods | 544.05bn | +15.9% |
| Exports of goods | 299.35bn | +8.4% |
| Trade deficit | 244.70bn | +26.5% (wider) |
| of which: Automotive exports | 107.15bn | +14.9% |
| of which: Agriculture and agro-food | 58.75bn | +7.0% |
| of which: Phosphates and derivatives | 50.95bn | -7.8% |
| of which: Textile and leather | 25.54bn | -5.5% |
| of which: Aeronautics exports | 20.57bn | +19.7% |
The export side is going through a quiet but important shift. Automotive is Morocco's export engine, at 107.15 billion dirhams, more than double the phosphate complex and up 14.9% on the year, with the vehicle-construction segment alone adding 7.06 billion. Aeronautics is growing even faster in percentage terms (+19.7%), led by assembly work (+2.77bn). Meanwhile phosphates and derivatives, historically the anchor of Moroccan exports, fell 7.8% - a sharper decline than the -2.3% recorded through June, as natural and chemical fertilizer sales dropped 3.37bn - and textile and leather fell 5.5%. The country that used to be defined by phosphate rock is increasingly defined by the cars and aircraft parts assembled in Tangier and Kenitra. For the phosphate side of that story, note that the producer, OCP, is state-owned and not listed on the exchange.
The import side is where the deficit actually comes from. Capital goods (133.20bn, +20.8%) and finished consumer goods (129.87bn, +12.3%) are the two largest blocks, and the energy bill rose 29.1% to 81.20 billion dirhams, driven almost entirely by diesel and fuel oil purchases (+12.17bn). Rising capital-goods imports are the benign kind of deficit, they are factories being equipped, with aircraft parts and utility vehicles the fastest-growing lines; the energy line is the one exposed to the oil price. Food imports rose a modest 3.0% (+1.64bn), with sugar purchases down but corn and animal-feed cake purchases up.
A goods deficit of 245 billion dirhams sounds alarming in isolation. It is not, because goods are only half the story. Morocco runs large surpluses in things that do not travel in containers, and these are what actually balance the external accounts.
| Invisible earning (Jan-Jul 2026) | Value (MAD) | Change YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Services surplus | 95.48bn | +13.2% |
| Tourism receipts (recettes voyages) | 79.01bn | +13.4% |
| Remittances from Moroccans abroad | 74.79bn | +8.1% |
| Foreign direct investment (net) | 29.47bn | +58.5% |
Put together, tourism, remittances, the services surplus, and foreign investment are large enough to cover most of the goods gap. Remittances from the roughly five million Moroccans living abroad are strikingly stable year after year and reached 74.79 billion dirhams; travel earned 79.01 billion against only 19.92 billion spent abroad, a net 59.09 billion; and net foreign direct investment rose 58.5%, helped as much by a 47.0% fall in disinvestment as by the 6.3% rise in inflows. This is the machinery that lets Morocco run a persistent goods deficit without a currency crisis.
The headline "deficit widens 26.5%" is the least interesting thing in this data. Three deeper points matter more. First, Morocco's export base has changed: automotive at 107.15 billion dirhams is now more than double phosphates and derivatives, which ties the economy to European industrial demand rather than to global fertilizer prices. Second, the composition of the import surge is reassuring rather than alarming, because the largest single block is capital goods (+20.8%), which is equipment for future production, not consumption; the genuinely exposed line is the 29.1% jump in the energy bill. Third, the reason a widening goods gap is not a crisis is the invisible column: the services surplus (95.48bn, which already contains tourism), remittances (74.79bn) and net FDI (29.47bn) come to 199.7 billion dirhams between them, roughly 82% of the goods gap, without counting anything twice. That is the same buffer that lets Bank Al-Maghrib hold the dirham peg and keep reserves near five months of imports. Note too that the phosphate decline, which had moderated to -2.3% through June, widened back out to -7.8% over the seven months - a reversal worth watching rather than a one-off, driven mainly by a 3.37bn drop in fertilizer sales. The jump in net FDI is also more nuanced than the +58.5% headline suggests: it is driven as much by a 47.0% drop in Moroccan outbound investment as by a modest 6.3% rise in inflows into Morocco.
The next Office des Changes release (August 2026 data, expected around the end of September 2026), and specifically whether the phosphate export decline continues to deepen and whether the invisibles keep pace with the widening goods gap as the peak summer tourism season ends. A weak autumn tourism handoff, a European auto slowdown, or a further rise in the energy bill would be the first places strain appears, feeding through to foreign reserves and, ultimately, the dirham.
The dirham and the peg. The external balance is the foundation the dirham stands on. The currency is pegged to a euro-dollar basket, and that peg is only credible while Morocco earns enough foreign currency, through exports plus the invisibles, to pay for its imports and service its debt. A widening goods deficit that is comfortably covered by remittances, tourism, and FDI keeps the peg safe. One that is not would eventually pressure reserves. That chain is traced in the FX and Reserves Monitor.
Inflation and the cost of living. Because Morocco imports so much, including energy and wheat, the trade account is where imported price pressure originates. A weaker external position tends to feed inflation through a softer dirham; a strong one helps contain it. The energy import bill in particular links straight to the oil price.
Investors and listed companies. The export shift is visible on the Casablanca exchange. The rise of automotive and aeronautics and the relative decline of phosphates reshapes which sectors carry Morocco's growth. Tourism strength supports hospitality and transport names; a strong external account supports the banks that finance trade. For the sector detail, see the mining and materials and banking pages.
The external sector is one node in a chain. To follow it:
This section grows over time rather than being overwritten, so the trajectory of Morocco's external accounts stays visible. Newest first.
What is Morocco's trade deficit in 2026?
Over January to July 2026, the goods trade deficit reached 244.70 billion dirhams, 26.5% wider than the 193.39 billion a year earlier, per the Office des Changes. Imports rose 15.9% to 544.05bn and exports 8.4% to 299.35bn.
How does Morocco fund its trade deficit?
Largely through invisible earnings: remittances from Moroccans abroad (74.79bn over January to July, +8.1%), tourism receipts (79.01bn, +13.4%), a services surplus (95.48bn, +13.2%), and net FDI (29.47bn, +58.5%). These keep the dirham peg and reserves stable despite the goods gap.
What are Morocco's main exports?
Automotive leads at 107.15bn dirhams over January to July 2026 (+14.9%), followed by agriculture and agro-food (58.75bn) and phosphates and derivatives (50.95bn). Aeronautics is the fastest-growing large sector at +19.7%.