Morocco's Budget Deficit Sees Significant Reduction
In a positive turn of financial events, Morocco's budget deficit has notably decreased to 33.1 billion dirhams by the end of September 2026, compared to a staggering 52.4 billion dirhams recorded at the same time last year. This encouraging development has been reported in a recent Treasury report published by the Ministry of Economy, Finance, and Public Performance in Rabat. The improvement in the budget deficit is attributed to a more rapid increase in ordinary revenue than in expenditures, coupled with a favorable adjustment in the balance of special treasury accounts.
According to the report, net ordinary revenue surged by an impressive 14.8%, reaching 338.8 billion dirhams, which is equivalent to 78.3% of the revenue forecasts set out in the 2026 finance law. Tax revenues alone rose by 11.7%, while non-tax revenues amounted to 46.7 billion dirhams, with significant contributions from public establishments and innovative financing mechanisms, totaling 16.8 billion dirhams and 20.1 billion dirhams, respectively.
On the expenditure side, ordinary expenditures climbed to 290.7 billion dirhams, marking a 9.3% increase, primarily driven by rises in spending on goods and services, debt interest, and compensation measures. The ordinary balance has consequently recorded a surplus of 48.2 billion dirhams. Furthermore, investment expenditures stood at 82.8 billion dirhams, while special treasury accounts have exhibited a surplus of 1.5 billion dirhams.
Regarding the treasury's financing needs, they have diminished to 41.4 billion dirhams by the end of September 2026, a reduction from the 71.7 billion dirhams reported the previous year. This decrease is a result of both an improved budgetary balance and a favorable change of 11 billion dirhams in pending operations compared to September 2025. The ministry’s document elaborates that this financing need was addressed through a combination of domestic and external funding sources. In the domestic market, net mobilizations reached 22.1 billion dirhams, with 97.3 billion dirhams in subscriptions and 75.2 billion dirhams in principal repayments. Meanwhile, net external borrowings amounted to 25.2 billion dirhams, derived from 40.7 billion dirhams in drawdowns, including 23.7 billion dirhams raised in the international financial market, against amortizations totaling 15.5 billion dirhams.
As reported by africanmanager.com.
