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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)
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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.

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Egypt Govt Pledges Wage Hikes, Relief for Citizens

A woman prepares traditional Egyptian butter cookies known as "Kahk", to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt, March 23, 2025. (Reuters)
A woman prepares traditional Egyptian butter cookies known as "Kahk", to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt, March 23, 2025. (Reuters)
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Egypt Govt Pledges Wage Hikes, Relief for Citizens

A woman prepares traditional Egyptian butter cookies known as "Kahk", to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt, March 23, 2025. (Reuters)
A woman prepares traditional Egyptian butter cookies known as "Kahk", to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt, March 23, 2025. (Reuters)

The Egyptian government has pledged to improve wages and ease the financial burden on citizens by raising the minimum wage to 7,000 Egyptian pounds (1 USD = 50.45 EGP in banks) starting from the new fiscal year in July 2025.

In its proposed budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the government allocated an 18.1% increase in wage provisions, totaling 671 billion pounds to fund the new salary increases.

This includes a 10% increase in the periodic allowance for civil service law employees and a 15% increase for non-civil service employees, with a minimum increase of 150 pounds per month, according to Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk's statement on Monday.

The government measures also include raising the “cost of living allowance” from 600 to 1,000 pounds and increasing the additional incentive by 300 pounds across all job grades.

This will result in a minimum monthly salary increase of 1,100 pounds for the lowest job grade, boosting overall wages.

While welcoming the increase in the minimum wage, Samira Al-Jazzar, a member of the parliamentary plan and budget committee, called on the government to take further steps to ensure citizens benefit from the wage hikes.

She stressed the need to regulate markets and implement strict measures against price manipulators.

Al-Jazzar expressed concerns about potential price hikes, which could lead to a rise in inflation again.

She told Asharq Al-Awsat that the government should have pursued multiple strategies to address this issue.

The lawmaker also emphasized the importance of expanding production, which she believes would gradually reduce prices.

Economic expert Karim Al-Omda told Asharq Al-Awsat that the new wage increases are a preemptive move by the government to mitigate public anger over expected rises in fuel and service prices.

The government plans to raise fuel prices three times by the end of this year as part of a fuel subsidy reduction strategy under the economic reform program agreed with the International Monetary Fund, which secured a $12 billion loan, according to statements from Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly.

Al-Omda urged the government to accelerate improvements in the education and healthcare sectors to genuinely enhance citizens' lives.

He highlighted the urgency of speeding up the implementation of the "comprehensive health insurance" system and making substantial reforms to the education system.

The Ministry of Finance has pledged to allocate the necessary funds to hire over 75,000 teachers, 30,000 doctors, and 10,000 other personnel in various government sectors in the upcoming fiscal year.