31 May 2022
Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Tunisia top the list of the countries that will be affected the most from the spillover of the Ukraine war given their dependency on Russian, Ukrainian energy, and food imports, a new report has found.
The report, published by the American rating agency S&P Global Rating, says that Morocco’s energy bill to GDP is one of the largest among the five MENA countries. However, notes the report, the country’s large potash export will partially offset the cost of rising energy prices.
Despite its position as a food exporter, Morocco’s food market remains highly vulnerable to developments in the global market as it is highly reliant on grain imports, the report explains.
In addition, S&P Global Rating projects that the five Middle Eastern and North African countries will be locked in the crossfire of the conflict as their food and energy imports range between 4% to 17% of their GDP.
While the war and sanctions have severely crippled the global commodities market, the American rating agency expects prices to remain high as the Ukraine war continues to escalate.
Source S&P
