Weak Auto Industry Worldwide Causes Drop in Morocco’s Car Exports

People wait with their cars to get on a ferry to Morocco at the southern Spanish port of Algeciras (File photo: Reuters)
People wait with their cars to get on a ferry to Morocco at the southern Spanish port of Algeciras (File photo: Reuters)
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Weak Auto Industry Worldwide Causes Drop in Morocco’s Car Exports

People wait with their cars to get on a ferry to Morocco at the southern Spanish port of Algeciras (File photo: Reuters)
People wait with their cars to get on a ferry to Morocco at the southern Spanish port of Algeciras (File photo: Reuters)

Morocco's car exports fell 6.2 percent in the first five months of 2019 in response to a downturn in the global automotive industry.

This is the first time that Morocco’s auto industry hits reverse after witnessing a growth in the past few years and becoming the country’s top export sector.

Despite the decline, the auto industry remained at the forefront of Morocco's exports with $1.6 billion, representing about 12 percent of the total value of Morocco's exports during the first five months of this year.

Wires and electrical cables industry ranked second in Morocco's value-added exports, with a value of $1.5 billion, up 7.2 percent and accounting for 11.5 percent of the country's total exports. This industry developed greatly in connection with the needs of the automotive industry, including the manufacture of components that enter into cars assembly.

Agricultural fertilizer exports came third with $1.2 billion and a 1.5 percent growth, followed by clothing exports of $1.1 billion.

Phosphoric acid ranked fourth in Morocco's exports over the same period by $685 million, a strong growth of 35.5 percent in association with the country’s increase of phosphoric acid exports to Africa under the new industrial partnerships of the OCP Group (Office Chérifien des Phosphates).

Morocco's exports during the first five months of the year amounted to $13.2 billion, and saw an increase of 3.44 percent compared to the same period last year.

These exports accounted for 29.2 percent of finished products, 22.6 percent of food and beverages, 20.4 percent of semi-finished products, 19.7 percent of finished industrial equipment, 4.7 percent of ores, and 2 percent of plant and animal raw materials. 



IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
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IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved the third review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 billion bailout on Saturday but warned that the economy remains vulnerable.
In a statement, the global lender said it would release about $333 million, bringing total funding to around $1.3 billion, to the crisis-hit South Asian nation. It said signs of an economic recovery were emerging, Reuters reported.
In a note of caution, it said "the critical next steps are to complete the commercial debt restructuring, finalize bilateral agreements with official creditors along the lines of the accord with the Official Creditor Committee and implement the terms of the other agreements. This will help restore Sri Lanka's debt sustainability."
Cash-strapped Sri Lanka plunged into its worst financial crisis in more than seven decades in 2022 with a severe dollar shortage sending inflation soaring to 70%, its currency to record lows and its economy contracting by 7.3% during the worst of the fallout and by 2.3% last year.
"Maintaining macroeconomic stability and restoring debt sustainability are key to securing Sri Lanka's prosperity and require persevering with responsible fiscal policy," the IMF said.
The IMF bailout secured in March last year helped stabilize economic conditions. The rupee has risen 11.3% in recent months and inflation disappeared, with prices falling 0.8% last month.
The island nation's economy is expected to grow 4.4% this year, the first increase in three years, according to the World Bank.
However, Sri Lanka still needs to complete a $12.5 billion debt restructuring with bondholders, which President Anura Kumara Dissanayake aims to finalize in December.
Sri Lanka will enter into individual agreements with bilateral creditors including Japan, China and India needed to complete a $10 billion debt restructuring, Dissanayake said.
He won the presidency in September, and his leftist coalition won a record 159 seats in the 225-member parliament in a general election last week.