By Loubna Flah
Morocco World News
Casablanca, May 18, 2013
Phosphates exports plummeted considerably according to the National Office for Exchange. A drop by 30% was recorded during last month of the current year 2013.
Sources close to the Cherifian Office for Phosphates (OCP) asserted that the steep drop in Phosphates exports was not totally unexpected.
According to the Moroccan daily Al Massae, OCP officials had anticipated a descending pattern for Phosphates exports compared to the spectacular performance recorded last year regarding the output, the number of transactions and the profits made.
This drop in phosphates exports is associated with the reverberations of the World financial crisis that caused demand for Phosphates to drop sharply.
Some experts consider that the falling prices of this precious commodity for the Moroccan economy may harbinger a forthcoming economic stagnation marked by sluggish growth.
Additionally, the plummeting prices of Phosphates are likely to increase the trade deficit and a cause serious regression in the foreign currency reserves.
The National Office for Exchange revealed that the foreign trade decreased slightly despite the decrease in energy imports.
Phosphate remains one of Morocco’s major resources and economic assets. It is noteworthy that Morocco is the world’s third largest producer of Phosphates after the United States and China.
Phosphate constitutes a major source of revenue for the state budget as it secures important reserves of foreign currency used in exports.
Geopolitics experts assert that a shortage in food and food security issues in the world are likely to increase demand for Phosphates essentially used in the production of fertilizers.
In the absence of substantial fossil energy resources, Morocco imports 98% of its energy needs from the international market, which remains a crippling factor for the Moroccan economy.