Who Runs Morocco’s Economy, the Key Players in 2026

GUIDES · MOROCCO

The Morocco economy key players are a short list. It runs from the palace and a new head of government to a phosphate giant, a few banks, foreign carmakers and a cautious central bank.

Morocco is a mid-sized economy that matters far beyond its size to American farmers, investors and shippers. It holds about two-thirds of the world’s known phosphate rock reserves, assembles cars for export and ships through Tanger Med, a port on the Strait of Gibraltar. A new head of government was appointed on 29 September 2026, so the question of who runs Morocco’s economy is live again.

This guide names the institutions and companies that hold economic power, with figures from their own filings. It sits alongside the wider Morocco Explained overview and the Morocco news hub. Dirham amounts are converted at Bank Al-Maghrib’s reference rate of MAD 9.98 to the US dollar on 5 October 2026.

Who Sets the Rules: the Palace, the Government and the Central Bank

Morocco is a constitutional monarchy, and King Mohammed VI is head of state. Under Article 47 of the constitution, the King appoints the head of government from the party that comes first in elections to the House of Representatives. That head of government then forms the cabinet that runs the economic ministries.

The Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), a pragmatic party founded in 2008 without a fixed ideological doctrine, came first in the election of Wednesday 23 September 2026. On 29 September the Royal Household announced that the King had appointed its coordinator, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, as head of government. She is the first woman to hold the post and was mayor of Marrakech before the appointment.

She succeeds Aziz Akhannouch of the National Rally of Independents (RNI), a liberal party, who led the government from September 2021. As of 6 October, Le360 reported that she favoured three partners. They are the centrist Istiqlal of Nizar Baraka and two socialist parties, Driss Lachgar’s USFP and Nabil Benabdallah’s PPS. The RNI has said it is ready to join, while the Islamist PJD of Abdelilah Benkirane has chosen opposition.

Until a cabinet is named, nobody can say who will hold the finance, economy and industry portfolios. Investors watching tax, energy and procurement policy face a transition period.

Bank Al-Maghrib, the central bank, is the other fixed point. Its board held the key rate at 2.25 percent on Tuesday 22 September 2026, the level it has kept since March 2025. It now expects inflation of just 0.7 percent in 2026 and growth of 4.4 percent, slowing to 2.9 percent in 2027 as the harvest returns to normal.

The bank expects the current account deficit to widen from 2.4 percent of GDP in 2025 to 4.6 percent in 2026. Costlier fuel, raw materials and capital goods imports explain most of it. It projects the energy import bill to rise 28.4 percent to MAD 138.1 billion (about US$13.8 billion) this year. Official reserves are forecast at MAD 502.8 billion (about US$50 billion) at the end of 2026, enough for five and a half months of imports.

OCP and the Phosphate Economy

OCP turns Morocco’s natural wealth into exports. It mines phosphate rock and turns it into fertiliser at plants that include its Jorf Lasfar units on the Atlantic coast. The US Geological Survey puts Moroccan phosphate rock reserves at 50 billion tonnes, out of a world total of 73 billion.

The group reported 2025 revenue of MAD 113.9 billion (about US$11.4 billion), up 17 percent on 2024. It credited strong demand in importing regions, notably India, and high fertiliser prices. Fourth-quarter capital spending alone came to MAD 9.2 billion (about US$920 million), as OCP keeps adding capacity, water management and renewable power.

OCP S.A. is the successor to a Moroccan state agency founded in 1920. Mostafa Terrab has run it since 2006, still led it in September 2026 and oversaw the creation of the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University. Bank Al-Maghrib expects phosphate and derivative exports to rise 9.7 percent in 2026, helped by higher fertiliser prices.

For the United States, OCP is both a supplier and a trade dispute. Washington has applied a countervailing duty order on Moroccan phosphate fertiliser since April 2021, after a petition by the US producer Mosaic. The Commerce Department published preliminary sunset review results on Friday 24 July 2026. It found that a subsidy rate of 20.04 percent would likely continue if the order were lifted.

Weeks earlier, on 29 June 2026, the President declared an emergency allowing temporary duty-free imports of Moroccan phosphate fertiliser on request. Commerce set out the procedure on 1 July. The International Trade Commission is running its own full five-year review, so the order’s future is still open.

The Banks That Fund Morocco

Moroccan banks are increasingly active across Africa. Attijariwafa bank, which reports a 27.3 percent share of lending, posted 2025 net banking income of MAD 34.9 billion (about US$3.5 billion). Its net income group share rose 16.2 percent to MAD 10.6 billion (about US$1.06 billion), and its total assets reached MAD 795.5 billion (about US$80 billion).

Attijariwafa is chaired by Mohamed El Kettani, and its reference shareholder is Al Mada with 46.5 percent of the capital. The bank put its own market value at US$17 billion at the end of 2025. Its international retail arm produced 32.8 percent of net banking income in 2025.

Bank of Africa, formerly BMCE, is the other large private banking group. Its chairman and chief executive is Othman Benjelloun, who also runs O Capital Group and chairs the insurer RMA and the telecoms operator Medi Telecom. Bank of Africa reported 2025 consolidated net banking income of MAD 20.4 billion (about US$2 billion). Its net income group share was MAD 3.8 billion (about US$381 million).

France’s Banque Fédérative du Crédit Mutuel (BFCM) sits on the Bank of Africa board. The group’s sub-Saharan arm, BOA Afrique, earned 215 million euros (about US$241 million) in net income group share in 2025. That exposure also brings risk: the group booked extra provisions after Senegal’s rating was cut to CCC.

Al Mada and the Holding Companies

Al Mada is the investment fund behind Attijariwafa bank and several industrial groups. It describes itself as a Casablanca-based, pan-African private equity fund and a long-term investor in capital-intensive sectors.

Its own website lists these holdings among others:

• Attijariwafa bank, where Al Mada holds 46.5 percent.
• Managem, the mining group.
• Holcim Maroc, the cement joint venture with Switzerland’s Holcim, which Al Mada calls the largest industrial market value on the Casablanca exchange.
• Sonasid, the steelmaker in which Al Mada and ArcelorMittal are reference shareholders, with capacity of 1.1 million tonnes.
• Nareva, its energy company, which is investing in green hydrogen, and Teralys, a new agribusiness holding.

Al Mada names Santander, ArcelorMittal, LafargeHolcim, Caterpillar, Zain and Engie among its partners. Several of its biggest holdings, including Holcim Maroc and Sonasid, are joint ventures with foreign industrial groups.

Maroc Telecom and the Casablanca Stock Exchange

Maroc Telecom trades in both Casablanca and Paris. At the end of 2025, Etisalat, the Emirates Telecommunications Corporation, held 53 percent, the Moroccan state 22 percent and other shareholders 25 percent.

The group reported 2025 revenue of MAD 36.7 billion (about US$3.7 billion), up 1.4 percent at constant exchange rates. Growth came from its Moov Africa subsidiaries, while revenue in Morocco itself held steady. It switched on 5G in Morocco in November 2025 and counts nearly 77 million customers across its markets.

The Casablanca Stock Exchange closed the third quarter of 2026 with a market value of MAD 1.04 trillion (about US$104 billion). The MASI index ended September at 17,733.06 points, down 5.91 percent since January. Managem led third-quarter trading by value, followed by Attijariwafa bank and Marsa Maroc, according to La Nouvelle Tribune.

Cars, Ports and the Export Machine

Cars are Morocco’s other export engine, and foreign groups build them. Renault Group produced more than 394,000 vehicles in Morocco in 2025 at its plants in Tangier and Casablanca, which it calls its second-largest industrial platform worldwide. It says 82 percent of that output goes abroad, to 63 destinations.

Stellantis, the maker of Peugeot and Fiat, runs the other big assembly plant at Kenitra. Renault says a network of 87 first-tier suppliers, some in the Tanger Med free zone, feeds its two factories.

Tanger Med, the port complex on the Strait of Gibraltar, is the hub that ties this together. Renault reports that the port handled 161 million tonnes of cargo and more than 11.1 million containers in 2025. Bank Al-Maghrib expects automotive exports to recover after near-stagnation in 2025 and reach MAD 202.2 billion (about US$20.3 billion) in 2027.

Tourism and remittances complete the picture. The central bank expects travel receipts of MAD 160 billion (about US$16 billion) in 2027. It sees remittances from Moroccans abroad at MAD 136.3 billion (about US$13.7 billion). Both cushion the trade deficit created by energy and capital-goods imports.

Morocco Economy Key Players at a Glance

• King Mohammed VI: head of state; appoints the head of government under Article 47.
• Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri (PAM): head of government since 29 September 2026, forming a cabinet.
• Bank Al-Maghrib: central bank; key rate 2.25 percent as of 22 September 2026.
• OCP and Mostafa Terrab: phosphate and fertiliser group; 2025 revenue of about US$11.4 billion.
• Al Mada: investment fund behind Attijariwafa, Managem, Holcim Maroc, Sonasid and Nareva.
• Attijariwafa bank and Mohamed El Kettani: 27.3 percent loan market share; 2025 net income group share of about US$1.06 billion.
• Bank of Africa and Othman Benjelloun: large private banking group; Benjelloun also runs O Capital Group.
• Maroc Telecom: telecoms operator listed in Casablanca and Paris; 53 percent owned by the UAE’s Etisalat, 22 percent by the state.
• Renault Group and Stellantis: the carmakers behind Morocco’s automotive exports.

What It Means for US Readers

Trade with the United States is small but tilted in America’s favour. US exports to Morocco were US$5.53 billion in 2025 and imports from Morocco US$1.86 billion, a US surplus of US$3.67 billion, according to the Census Bureau. The free trade agreement signed on 15 June 2004 has been in force since 1 January 2006.

Most Moroccan goods entering the United States now carry a 12.5 percent Section 301 tariff. The US Trade Representative imposed it on Thursday 23 July 2026 on 60 economies it says fail to ban imports made with forced labour, with exemptions listed in annexes. Morocco’s employers’ federation, CGEM, has said preliminary data do not suggest the measure will derail Moroccan exporters.

For US farmers and fertiliser buyers, the duty order on OCP fertiliser is the bigger question. A final sunset ruling and the trade commission’s review will decide whether Moroccan phosphate stays partly priced out of the US market. For investors, Maroc Telecom’s Paris listing and Moroccan bank shares in Casablanca are the visible routes, with dirham exposure attached.

For travellers and expats, Bank Al-Maghrib expects the dirham’s real effective exchange rate to weaken 4.1 percent in 2026, after a 2 percent rise in 2025. Separate guides to opening a bank account in Morocco and to the country’s geopolitics cover the practical side.

What Prediction Markets Say

On Polymarket, the next-prime-minister contract priced Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri at 94.75 cents, a 95% implied chance. That was the price on 6 October at 9:07 a.m. ET. The market had traded about US$33,900 in total, US$19,400 of it on her contract. Every other name, including Nizar Baraka and Mohamed Ouzzine, traded at 3% or less.

A separate bet on whether Aziz Akhannouch would be out as prime minister by 31 December 2026 stood at 93.8% yes, with volume of about US$171,400. Both markets were still open on 6 October, a week after the appointment. These are bets, not polls.

Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.

What Is Not Known

• Who will hold the finance, economy, industry and energy ministries in El Mansouri’s cabinet, and which parties will join it.
• Whether the new government will change the 2027 draft budget that the outgoing team prepared.
• The final outcome of the US sunset reviews of the duty order on Moroccan phosphate fertiliser, and how long the emergency duty-free window will last.
• Which Moroccan products are exempt from the 12.5 percent US tariff in practice, and how much trade it will divert.
• Al Mada’s full shareholder register, which the fund does not set out on the public pages cited here. Moroccan and foreign media describe holding companies of the royal family as its main shareholders.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who runs Morocco’s economy in 2026?

King Mohammed VI is head of state and appoints the head of government. Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri of PAM was appointed head of government on 29 September 2026 and is forming a cabinet. Bank Al-Maghrib runs monetary policy, and the main corporate players include OCP, Al Mada, Attijariwafa bank and Bank of Africa.

Who is Morocco’s prime minister?

Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, coordinator of the Authenticity and Modernity Party, was appointed head of government by King Mohammed VI on 29 September 2026. She succeeds Aziz Akhannouch and is the first woman in the post.

What is OCP and why does it matter?

OCP is Morocco’s phosphate and fertiliser group, which grew out of a state agency founded in 1920 and has been led by Mostafa Terrab since 2006. It reported 2025 revenue of MAD 113.9 billion (about US$11.4 billion). Morocco holds 50 billion tonnes of the world’s 73 billion tonnes of phosphate rock reserves, according to the US Geological Survey.

What is Al Mada?

Al Mada is a Casablanca-based pan-African investment fund. It is the reference shareholder of Attijariwafa bank with 46.5 percent and holds Managem, Holcim Maroc, Sonasid and the energy company Nareva.

What US tariff applies to Moroccan goods?

Since July 2026, most Moroccan goods face a 12.5 percent US Section 301 tariff linked to forced-labour import rules, with listed exemptions. Moroccan phosphate fertiliser also faces a separate US countervailing duty order dating from April 2021.

What is Morocco’s interest rate?

Bank Al-Maghrib held its key rate at 2.25 percent on 22 September 2026. It expects inflation of 0.7 percent and growth of 4.4 percent in 2026.

Sources: Ministry of the Royal Household communiqué via the Moroccan government portal (https://www.maroc.ma/en/news/hm-king-appoints-fatima-ezzahra-el-mansouri-head-government-entrusts-her-forming-new-govt); Bank Al-Maghrib board press release of 22 September 2026 (https://www.bkam.ma/en/content/download/851045/9186654/CdP_ConseilBAM_T3_2026_En.pdf) and reference rates of 5 October 2026 (https://www.bkam.ma/Marches/Principaux-indicateurs/Marche-des-changes/Cours-de-change/Cours-de-reference); OCP fourth-quarter 2025 results filed with the AMMC (https://www.ammc.ma/sites/default/files/CP_OCP_T4_25.pdf); USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, phosphate rock (https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-phosphate.pdf); Attijariwafa bank 2025 results and financial report (https://ir.attijariwafabank.com/static-files/237262e0-db19-4ae5-ad23-5666a1d4faa3, https://ir.attijariwafabank.com/static-files/b957a261-0284-4e61-a17d-1217e6a6f7eb); Bank of Africa 2025 results and annual financial report (https://ir-bankofafrica.ma/sites/default/files/2026-03/Communique_des_Resultats_Annuels_2025_BANK_OF_AFRICA.pdf, https://www.ir-bankofafrica.ma/sites/default/files/2026-07/RFA_BOA_2025-2026.pdf); Maroc Telecom 2025 annual financial report (https://www.ammc.ma/sites/default/files/Maroc_Telecom_RFA_2025.pdf); Al Mada (https://www.almada.ma/en/fonds-al-mada, https://www.almada.ma/en/mines-et-materiaux-de-construction, https://www.almada.ma/en/secteurs-davenir); Renault Group (https://www.renaultgroup.com/en/magazine/our-group-news/tangier-factory-the-industrial-and-logistics-hub-where-everything-comes-together/); US Census Bureau trade with Morocco (https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c7140.html); USTR US-Morocco FTA (https://ustr.gov/trade-agreements/free-trade-agreements/morocco-fta); Federal Register, Section 301 forced-labour actions (https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/07/28/2026-15274/actions-by-the-united-states-in-the-investigations-under-section-301-of-the-trade-act-of-1974-of-the) and phosphate fertiliser sunset review (https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/07/24/2026-14971/phosphate-fertilizers-from-the-kingdom-of-morocco-preliminary-results-of-first-full-sunset-review-of); Commerce Department section 318 memorandum (https://access.trade.gov/Fertilizers%20Morocco%20CVD%20Import%20Duty%20Exemption%20Request.pdf); Le360, Morocco World News, Hespress, La Vie Éco, Boursenews and La Nouvelle Tribune for coalition talks and market data. All accessed 6 October 2026.

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