Morocco, Turkiye deepen trade ties to tackle textile-driven imbalance

The announcement followed Morocco’s review of the 2006 FTA (revised five years ago), prompted by a trade deficit that has reached around $3 billion, according to Morocco's official data. This imbalance has been driven primarily by textile imports, with Moroccan manufacturers heavily reliant on Turkish fabric.

Both sides reached a consensus to elevate their trade volume beyond the current $5 billion, guided by the principle of ‘win-win cooperation’, Turkish deputy trade minister Mustafa Tuzcu said.

The FTA forms the foundation of economic ties between the two nations, pointing to the increasingly active role Turkish firms are playing in Morocco’s investment landscape. “Our companies are becoming stronger actors in Morocco’s improving investment environment,” he noted.

Turkish investments in Morocco now exceed $1 billion, with contractors having completed infrastructure projects worth $4.3 billion to date, Tuzcu was cited as saying by Turkish media reports.

When the FTA was last revised, Morocco had imposed a 90-per cent tariff on Turkish textile and clothing products to safeguard local producers and preserve jobs.

Despite the measure, Moroccan companies continue to import Turkish textiles due to limited local production.

Omer Hjira, Morocco’s deputy minister of foreign trade, said the aim is to increase Morocco’s exports to Turkiye, while encouraging more Turkish investment in the former.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)