Two years after Asssociation agreement, UK seeks to boost trade with Morocco

The UK is seeking to go beyond the Association agreement signed with Morocco in 2019 to develop new ways to boost trade between the two Kingdoms, The UK Prime Minister envoy to Morocco, Andrew Murrison said.

“There is good news,” Murrison told Hespress EN in an interview on the sidelines of a COP26 event organized by the British embassy on Wednesday.

“In the past 12 months, bilateral trade has gone past 7.2 percent, which I think is remarkable given the context.”

The Envoy said the UK’s main trade interest with Morocco in the comping period prioritizes agrifood. ” We want to see Moroccan food products in British supermarkets,’ he said.

He said agri-food trade is expected to see broader growth, given the new maritime connection between Tangier Med and the southern British city of Poole which would see Morocco exporting its products to the UK in less than three days, compared to the six days it takes by land and help increase direct integration in cross-border supply chains.

“But of course, we need to get much, much further,” Murrison said.

One industry that the British are eyeing is pharmaceuticals, he said.

The Association Agreement and other endeavors the UK is focused on fostering with Morocco give the European Kingdom a competitive advantage over Morocco’s traditional regional partners, such as Spain and France, the Envoy said.

Total UK exports to Morocco amounted to 757 million euros in the four quarters to the end of Q3 2021, while imports from Morocco amounted to £1.1 billion in the four quarters to the end of Q3 2021, an increase of 14.2%.

Morocco was the UK’s 60th largest trading partner in the four quarters to the end of Q3 2021 accounting for 0.1% of total UK trade.