Chamber international trade update

Alan Rides MIEx (Grad) Chief Executive

Trade with Morocco is up in both directions to £3.6bn, so our Chambers first trade mission to Morocco will take place in November 2024 led by David Billingsby, supported by Samar and Sally. He will take a delegation of eight Chamber members to Casablanca to improve exports to Morocco and inward investment from Morocco.

This mission is to take forward relations made in the visit in early October from Moroccan Agency for Investment & Export Development (AMDIE) whose 30-strong delegation was well received by our Chambers members. A follow-up event was also held at the Grosvenor Hotel where we presented with LCCI, and the Moroccan Embassy. Presentations showed that Morocco is not just a UK tourist destination; the UK is now Morocco’s 4th largest export market with exports up from £500m to over £2.2bn made up mainly of fruit and vegetables. Also, UK exports to Morocco went up from £500m to £1.3bn making up 71% of goods and only 29% of services.

The UK is also investing in Morocco via the XLinks project, where nearly 10% of the UK’s power will be delivered via Solar farms (some the size of Greater London in the Sahara Desert) and Wind Turbines (in the Atlas Mountains) via a subsea electric cable running directly to the UK.

The UK is now Morocco’s 4th largest export market with exports up from £500m to over £2.2bn made up mainly of fruit and vegetables. Also, UK exports to Morocco went up from £500m to £1.3bn making up 71% of goods and only 29% of services.