Morocco’s economy grew by 4.3% in the third quarter of 2024, an acceleration from 3% during the same period in 2023, according to the High Commission for Planning (HCP).
This improvement is mainly attributed to a 6.3% rise in domestic demand, which played a pivotal role in driving economic activity.
The national accounts for Q3 2024 reflect a notable increase in economic growth, with non-agricultural sectors expanding by 5.1%, compared to 3.1% in the same period last year.
However, agricultural output declined by 5.2% due to challenging weather conditions.
The secondary sector showed robust growth, with the value-added volume of industries increasing by 7.6%, up from just 1.1% in Q3 2023.
This growth was driven by a strong performance in several key industries, including extraction industries (+15.9%), manufacturing (+7.5%), construction (+6.9%), and utilities such as electricity and water (+3.4%). These sectors contributed significantly to the overall economic expansion.
The tertiary sector also experienced positive growth, with an increase from 3.6% in Q3 2023 to 3.8% in Q3 2024.
Key sectors such as transport and warehousing (+4%), public administration and social security (+3.7%), and trade (+3.2%) saw improvements.
However, some areas like hospitality, research and development, and financial services experienced slower growth compared to the previous year.
In contrast, the primary sector, which includes agriculture, recorded a decline of 4.1%, reversing the 3.8% growth observed in Q3 2023. This downturn was primarily due to a 5.2% drop in agricultural activity, while fishing saw a notable increase of 12%.
Despite challenges in agriculture, Morocco managed to contain inflation. GDP at current prices grew by 6% in Q3 2024, down from 10.2% in the same period in 2023.
The general price level rose by just 1.7%, a sharp reduction from the 7.2% inflation seen in Q3 2023, indicating effective price control.
Domestic demand showed strong growth, rising by 6.3% in Q3 2024, compared to 4.2% in 2023, contributing 6.9 percentage points to overall economic growth.
A major positive development was the strong recovery in gross investment, which grew by 13.5%, reversing the 3.5% decline in Q3 2023. This contributed 3.7 points to the overall economic growth, a stark contrast to the negative contribution of 1.2 points last year.
In terms of external trade, Morocco faced a mixed picture. Imports of goods and services grew by 12.9%, contributing negatively to growth by 6.9 points, up from a negative contribution of 5 points in Q3 2023.
However, exports saw a 9.8% increase, contributing 4.4 points to growth, an improvement over the previous year’s 3.4-point contribution. Despite this, the external trade balance continued to negatively impact economic growth, with a net contribution of -2.5 points, compared to -1.6 points last year.
Financing needs of Morocco’s economy increased during Q3 2024. Despite a 6% rise in GDP, the country experienced a 3.3% decline in net income from abroad.
As a result, gross disposable income increased by 5.4%, down from 9% in the same period last year. The national savings rate edged up slightly to 26.9% of GDP, while gross investment reached 30.7%, up from 28.5% in Q3 2023.
These figures indicate a rising need for external financing, with the financing gap widening from 1.8% to 3.8% of GDP.
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