The 6th session of the joint Committee for the follow-up of the Morocco-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was held on Tuesday in Rabat, under the co-chairmanship of minister of Industry, Investment, Trade and Digital Economy, Moulay Hafid Elalamy, and Assistant United States Trade Representative for Europe and the Middle East, Dan Mullaney. During this meeting, emphasis was placed on the means to be implemented in order to further develop trade relations between Morocco and the United States. On this occasion, Elalamy said that foreign direct investment (FDI) from the United States of America increased during the period from 2012 to 2018, and represented in 2018 about 5.2% of total FDI inflows to Morocco, adding that the presence of more than 120 US companies in Morocco is a sign of confidence in the country's potential. He also pointed out that the new direct air route between Casablanca-Miami, in addition to Casablanca-New York and Casablanca-Washington, offers promising prospects for US companies and strengthens Morocco's position as a suitable land for investment. For his part, Mullaney expressed his willingness to develop trade relations between Morocco and the United States and to promote investment. After raising some of the challenges facing the Morocco-US FTA, he called for reflection on how to improve bilateral trade and take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the agreement. The Morocco-US FTA, which enshrines the Kingdom's decades-old policy of openness, has created momentum through its positive impact on economic and trade relations between the two countries. The volume of trade between Morocco and the United States more than quadrupled during the period 2006-2018, reaching approximately $5.44 billion in 2018, compared to $1.34 billion in 2006. During the same period, exports increased more than fivefold to $1.38 billion in 2018 from just $0.26 billion in 2006. Imports more than quadrupled, reaching $4.06 billion in 2018 compared to only $1.08 billion in 2006.
