Reuters
Morocco’s economy grew 4.4 percent in the first quarter of 2015 from a year ago, after slowing to 1.8 percent growth in the final three months of 2014, amid higher agricultural output, the country’s planning agency said on Wednesday.
Agricultural output rose by 12.5 pct in the first quarter this year, including 8.8 pct in the cereal production, according to Morocco’s Planning Agency. The country is on course to harvest a record cereal crop of more than 10 million tonnes this year after favourable rainfall during the growing season.
Agriculture accounts for more than 15 percent of the Moroccan economy.
The non-agricultural sector grew 3.2 pct in the first quarter from a year ago, the agency said.
It expects the Moroccan economy to grow 4.6 pct in the second quarter of 2015. The country’s central bank said growth would reach 5 pct in the full year, while the government forecasts a 4.4 pct expansion.
The current account deficit fell 42 pct in the first three months of the year, as oil prices fell and Moroccan exports improved, the agency said. The North African kingdom is one of the biggest energy importers in the region.
(Reporting By Aziz El Yaakoubi; Editing by Larry King)
