Record July performance: Spanish trade surplus and €1.98 billion in bilateral turnover
Strategic economic anchor in Africa and third non-EU export destination
Integrated cross-border value chains and the impact of the Joint Declaration
Despite diplomatic friction and the acute migration crisis documented along the border perimeter of Ceuta in late July, bilateral trade between Morocco and Spain maintains an uninterrupted upward trajectory.
The resilience of merchandise trade flows has weathered recent diplomatic oscillations, confirming the Alaouite Kingdom as an essential strategic trading partner for Madrid on the international stage.
Record July performance: Spanish trade surplus and €1.98 billion in bilateral turnover
The growing momentum governing trade relations between Rabat and Madrid is clearly reflected in Spanish export data to the Moroccan market. In July, national export sales reached €1.159 billion, an all-time monthly high. This figure represents a 2.8% year-on-year increase compared to the same period in 2025, according to official data published by the State Secretariat for Trade within Spain’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Enterprise.
Left to right: Moroccan Ambassador to Spain Karima Benyaich; Spanish Secretary of State for Trade Amparo López Senovilla; and Moroccan Minister of Investment Karim Zidane – ATALAYAR/GUILLERMO LÓPEZ
Concurrently, Spanish imports originating from Morocco maintained a parallel upward trend, reaching €816.3 million in July, up 2.5% compared to the previous year’s performance.
Consequently, Spain’s trade surplus widened to €342.9 million for the month, outperforming the balance recorded twelve months earlier. In aggregate, bilateral merchandise turnover comfortably surpassed €1.98 billion during the seventh month of the year, shielding commercial operations against localized border pressures.
This structural expansion is further substantiated in cumulative figures for the first seven months of 2026. Between January and July, Spanish exports to Morocco totaled €7.58 billion, marking a 3.4% expansion over 2025.
Port of Algeciras – Depositphotos
Over the same period, Spanish imports expanded to €6.61 billion, recording a 3.9% year-on-year increase. The cumulative seven-month balance generated a trade surplus for Spain of €967.9 million, alongside an overall trade volume exceeding €14.19 billion, consolidating the Maghrebi market’s systemic weight within Spain’s foreign sector.
Strategic economic anchor in Africa and third non-EU export destination
Morocco cements its position as Spain’s foremost trading partner across the African continent and the primary destination for industrial machinery and agri-food shipments. During July alone, the Kingdom absorbed 54.4% of total Spanish exports destined for Africa, which reached an aggregate valuation of approximately €2.13 billion.
Nadia Fettah Alaoui, Moroccan Minister of Economy and Finance – REUTERS/KEN CEDENO
Outside the European Union (EU), Morocco consolidates its role as the third-largest export market for the Spanish economy globally, trailing only the United Kingdom and the United States, and capturing 3.3% of Spain’s worldwide export volume.
The strategic dimension of this regional partner was evidenced in first-half 2026 metrics: Spanish merchandise shipments to Morocco surpassed total exports to China by 60% and stood barely 26% below total volumes bound for the United States, underlining the structural value of the neighboring market in Spain’s external balance sheet.
The Governor of Morocco’s Central Bank (Bank Al-Maghrib), Abdellatif Jouahri – REUTERS/YOUSSEF BOUDIAL
Integrated cross-border value chains and the impact of the Joint Declaration
The remarkable resilience of bilateral commerce is rooted in an integrated manufacturing base spanning both shores of the Strait of Gibraltar. Both economies share integrated industrial value chains across high-value sectors, including automotive manufacturing, electrical equipment, textiles, industrial capital goods, and renewable energy.
This industrial complementarity reinforces a comprehensive strategic partnership in which shared economic interests systematically supersede cyclical political disagreements. Spanish Minister for Economy, Trade and Enterprise, Carlos Cuerpo, underlined this structural dynamic on 7 September 2026 during his address at Los Desayunos de EFE y RTVE.
Cuerpo noted that Spain exports over €12 billion annually to the Alaouite Kingdom, compared to €16 billion exported to the United States: «We are talking about 12 billion versus 16 billion; this comparison illustrates the sheer importance of our corporate presence within the Moroccan economy», stated the minister, emphasizing the necessity of expanding Spanish investment through trade facilitation agencies such as ICEX Spain Trade and Investment.
Elisa Carbonell Martín, CEO of ICEX Spain Trade and Investment – PHOTO/ATALAYAR
The robust trade volume registered throughout July, unfolding alongside heightened migratory pressure on the Ceuta perimeter, confirms that deep-seated economic links effectively insulate commercial ties from external disruptions.
Since the signing of the Spanish-Moroccan Joint Declaration in April 2022—a historic milestone establishing structured dialogue and mutual institutional respect—economic cooperation has operated as a bilateral shock absorber. Under the reign of King Mohammed VI, Morocco has not only reinforced its economic alliance with Spain, but has solidified its standing as an irreplaceable production and logistical platform anchoring the Euro-Mediterranean corridor.