Morocco's Phosphate Exports Reach $2.45 Bn

Heavy machinery is seen at a phosphate mine at the Boucraa factory of the National Moroccan phosphate company (OCP) (File photo: Reuters)
Heavy machinery is seen at a phosphate mine at the Boucraa factory of the National Moroccan phosphate company (OCP) (File photo: Reuters)
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Morocco's Phosphate Exports Reach $2.45 Bn

Heavy machinery is seen at a phosphate mine at the Boucraa factory of the National Moroccan phosphate company (OCP) (File photo: Reuters)
Heavy machinery is seen at a phosphate mine at the Boucraa factory of the National Moroccan phosphate company (OCP) (File photo: Reuters)

Morocco's exports of phosphate and derivatives reached $2.45 billion at the end of March, according to recent data from the Foreign Exchange Office (FEO).

The Office indicated that Morocco's phosphate exports almost doubled as of March 2022 compared to the same period in 2021, when the number reached $1.35 billion.

It attributed the change to the increase in natural and chemical fertilizers sales.

Exports of the agriculture and food industry sector amounted to $2.44 billion compared to $2.13 billion during the same period last year, a 14.9 percent increase.

The Office attributed the development to the "simultaneous increase in sales of the food industry (+27.4 percent) and agriculture, forestry, and hunting (+5.7 percent)."

Textile and leather exports rose 32.3 percent during the first quarter of this year, the highest level during the past five years, while aviation sales increased 53 percent to $517 million, compared to $3.38 million a year ago.

The Office reported that remittances from Moroccans living abroad exceeded $2.29 billion during the first three months of 2022, an 8.3 percent increase compared to last year's same period.

The FEO also reported that Morocco's trade deficit widened 43 percent to $6.56 billion, with imports rising 34 percent, while exports increased 29 percent from January to March compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, the High Commission for Planning announced that the unemployment rate dropped 0.4 percent, falling from 12.5 to 12.1 percent.

Urban areas registered a decrease in the unemployment rate from 17.1 percent in Q1 2021 to 16.3 percent in the same period in 2022. Rural areas recorded a slight decline of 0.2 percent, from 5.3 percent in Q1 2021's to 5.1 percent in the same period in 2022.

The unemployment rate among Moroccan women also fell by 0.2 percent, from 17.5 percent in Q1 2021 to 17.3 percent in Q1 of 2022.



Record-Breaking Bitcoin Surges Towards $90,000 on Trump Boost

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at the Bitcoin 2024 Conference, July 27, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP)
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at the Bitcoin 2024 Conference, July 27, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP)
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Record-Breaking Bitcoin Surges Towards $90,000 on Trump Boost

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at the Bitcoin 2024 Conference, July 27, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP)
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at the Bitcoin 2024 Conference, July 27, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP)

Bitcoin rallied to the verge of $90,000 on Tuesday, riding a wave of euphoria since the election of Donald Trump as US president on expectations his administration will be crypto friendly.

The world's biggest cryptocurrency has become one of the most eye-catching movers in the week since the election and touched $89,982 - a gain of around 30% since Nov. 5. It was last down 1.4% at $86,730.

Bitcoin is surging along with Elon Musk's automaker Tesla, which is up nearly 40% since voting results rolled in, as investors figure Trump's friends and interests will do well while he is in office.

"The crypto enthusiasts think they have a like-minded incoming president," said Alvin Tan, head of Asia FX strategy at RBC Capital Markets.

"The thing about bitcoin at the end of the day is that there is no valuation anchor to it, it's hard to get a grip on fair value. So when sentiment is very positive, it does get carried away a lot more than other asset classes."

Trump embraced digital assets during his campaign, promising to make the United States the "crypto capital of the planet" and to accumulate a national stockpile of bitcoin.

It is not clear how or when that could happen, but the possibility drove a speculative surge in crypto mining and trading stocks.

"I think it increases the chances that other nation states buy bitcoin in a bid to front run the US," said Matthew Dibb, chief investment officer at cryptocurrency asset manager Astronaut Capital.

"Additionally, I think it would be a crazy catalyst for the US listed bitcoin miners ... given possibilities of such entities getting nationalized."

Crypto miner Riot Platforms jumped nearly 17% on Wall Street on Monday. Fellow miners MARA Holdings and CleanSpark leapt nearly 30%.

Software company and investor in bitcoin MicroStrategy announced it had spent about $2 billion buying bitcoin between Oct. 31 and Nov. 10. Shares rose 26% on Monday.

"Obviously (it's) a clear Trump trade as he is so supportive of the industry, and this can only mean more demand both for crypto stocks as well as the currencies themselves," Nick Twidale, chief market analyst at ATFX Global in Sydney, said of the bitcoin rally.

"The fact that bitcoin was trading near all-time highs when the election result came through meant that it had clean sky above."

The euphoria extended across the crypto landscape with smaller tokens such as ether and dogecoin surging, although they dipped on Tuesday morning in Europe.

Crypto investors see an end to increased scrutiny under US Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler whom Trump has said he will replace. Trump also unveiled a new crypto business, World Liberty Financial, in September.

"What we're seeing isn't just a price milestone; it's a signal that the market is warming to the idea of bitcoin as a more stable, even politically favored, asset," said Justin D'Anethan, head of Asia-Pacific business development at digital assets market maker Keyrock.