Morocco raises soft wheat import custom duty to 135pc until year-end

RABAT: Morocco has raised its soft wheat import custom tax to 135 percent from 30 percent until Dec. 31, the government said on Thursday, the highest rate in years thanks to strong harvest and low international prices.

This year's harvest saw a 203 percent increase over last year, with 4.94 millions tonnes of soft wheat, 2.33 million tonnes durum, and 2.89 million tonnes of barley.

The customs duty will go into effect upon publication in the official bulletin and will be in effect through Dec. 31, the statement said, following the first government council meeting after the cabinet won a confidence vote in parliament on Wednesday.

Agriculture accounts for more than 15 percent of the economy. The central bank has said the sector's contribution to growth would be 11.5 percent, rising from 9.6 percent last year.

The central bank expects GDP to reach 4.3 percent in 2017, up from 1.1 percent last year, due to a recovery in agricultural output.

As of last month, wheat imports fell 27 percent from a year earlier to 2.54 billion dirhams or($255.70 million).

Morocco's import campaign typically runs from October through April, after which tariffs are raised to prohibitive levels in order to protect the local harvest.

This season's rain comes after last year's abnormally dry weather across North Africa, which slashed the country's cereal harvest last season to 3.35 million tonnes, down 70 percent from the previous record of 11 million tonnes.