Morocco’s economic growth to hold steady in 2026, says IMF

Morocco’s economy is expected to grow by 4.9% in 2026, supported by strong investment and a good agricultural season, as reported by APA News via the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on February 12th.

Led by Laura Jaramillo, an IMF team visited Rabat from January 29th to February 11th to review the country’s economy and outlook. After meeting government officials, Bank Al-Maghrib and business leaders, the IMF said growth likely reached 4.9% in 2025 and should stay the same in 2026. 

The IMF said better agricultural output, rising public and private investment and a strong services sector are the main factors driving the growth. Inflation remained low in 2025, averaging 0.8% for the year. Lower food prices helped keep overall prices stable. 

The IMF expects inflation to slowly increase towards 2% by mid-2027 as economic activity strengthens. Moreover, Morocco is anticipated to double the size of its economy over the next 15 years and break into the top 60 global economies by 2040. 

Concerning foreign trade, the IMF said the current account deficit is likely to widen slightly. This is mainly because Morocco is importing more goods for large investment projects. However, higher tourism revenue and foreign investments are expected to ease some of that pressure. 

Public finances also improved in 2025. Tax revenues reached 24.5% of the GDP, helped by tax reforms, boosting state revenues. The budget deficit stood at 3.5% of GDP, lower than the earlier estimate of 3.8%.

The IMF said Bank Al-Maghrib’s current policy stance is appropriate given low inflation. It also encouraged further gradual moves towards a more flexible exchange rate system.

In the long-term, the IMF stressed that Morocco must create more jobs to keep growth strong. It said this will require a better business environment, a stronger private sector, and better integration of education and labour market needs under the Employment Roadmap 2030.

APA News, IMF, Maghrebi.org