Moroccans Consume 145 Million Gas Bottles and 798,000 Tons of Sugar in 8 Months

Moroccans consumed 145 million bottles of butane gas, weighing 1.74 million tons, and 798,000 tons of white sugar during the first eight months of 2026. The total cost of these imports was approximately 11.8 billion dirhams, with 9 billion dirhams spent on butane and 2 billion dirhams on sugar. The government subsidized these imports, with the state covering 0.7 billion dirhams of the cost of raw sugar imports and 0.8 billion dirhams for national subsidized flour.

The increased cost of imports was attributed to global events, including the war in the Middle East and disruptions to navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The average price of Brent crude oil rose to $91 per barrel between January and August, a 27.2% increase from the previous year. The price of butane also increased, with the Moroccan formula price rising to $611 per ton, up from $536. The report noted that butane bore the brunt of the increased costs, with the monthly average expenditure rising by 38% to 1.3 billion dirhams.

The government's subsidy for butane gas increased significantly, with the cost rising from 8.6 billion dirhams to 9 billion dirhams during the same period in 2025. The subsidy for a 12-kilogram bottle of butane gas was 79 dirhams in April, up from 46-51 dirhams in the first three months of the year. The actual cost of the bottle was 129 dirhams, up from 101 dirhams in March. The state's share of the cost increased from 49% in January to 61% in April.

Morocco's consumption of butane gas remained high, with 227.5 million bottles consumed in 2025, a 3.5% decrease from the previous year. However, consumption increased by 18.4% since 2018. In the first half of 2026, Morocco imported 1.49 million tons of butane gas, a record high and a 7% increase from the previous year. The majority of these imports came from the United States, with 78% of the total.

The cost of sugar imports was lower than that of butane, with the total subsidy for refined sugar standing at 2.7 billion dirhams, a 10.8% decrease from the previous year. The net cost of sugar imports was 2 billion dirhams, down from 3.3 billion dirhams. The decrease in cost was attributed to a drop in the price of raw sugar, which fell to $352 per ton from $421.

Despite the decrease in sugar import costs, Morocco remains heavily dependent on imports to meet its sugar needs. The country's production of sugar is expected to be 300,000 tons, which covers only 24% of its total consumption of 1.23 million tons in 2025. In 2021, the production covered 32% of consumption, but this fell to 15% in 2024 due to a decline in production.

The Moroccan government's budget for 2027 has allocated 19.4 billion dirhams for subsidies, a decrease of 2.4 billion dirhams from the current year's allocation. The government has also opened additional credits worth 8 billion dirhams to support prices, bringing the total allocation for subsidies to 21.77 billion dirhams.

Key points

• Morocco's consumption of butane gas and sugar reached 145 million bottles and 798,000 tons respectively in the first eight months of 2026.
• The total cost of these imports was approximately 11.8 billion dirhams.
• The government's subsidy for butane gas increased significantly, with the cost rising from 8.6 billion dirhams to 9 billion dirhams during the same period in 2025.