Morocco has introduced a definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of PVC from the United States, in order to protect the local industry against trade practices deemed unfair. This measure, which came into force at the start of 2025, is part of a strategy to preserve national competitiveness in the face of imported products at artificially low prices.
Morocco has strengthened its trade measures by applying a definitive anti-dumping duty of 24.88% on imports of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) from the United States, a decision that entered into force on January 3, 2025. This initiative aims to protect the local PVC industry, a strategic sector for the Moroccan economy, in response to dumping practices which disrupted the market. The objective of this measure is to maintain the competitiveness of national industry in the face of imports deemed abnormally cheap, which could harm local producers.
The Administration of Customs and Indirect Taxes (ADII) had already implemented a temporary anti-dumping duty of 5.5% on American PVC since 1is February 2024, following preliminary investigations. However, this measure was reassessed after a thorough investigation by the competent authorities, thus confirming the need for an upward adjustment. On January 3, 2025, a joint decree of the Ministries of Industry and Commerce and of Economy and Finance formalized the application of the definitive anti-dumping duty of 24.88%, valid for a period of 5 years.
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In accordance with this new regulation, the amounts already collected under the provisional anti-dumping duty as well as the applicable VAT will now be considered definitive. However, exceptions are provided for certain imports, in particular those accompanied by an invoice validated by the Ministry of Industry. These imports will be exempt from the anti-dumping duty, thus offering a certain flexibility for transactions deemed to comply with local standards.
Investigation into imports of PVC from Egypt
At the same time, Morocco is putting in place similar measures to monitor PVC imports from Egypt, following a request from the National Electrolysis and Petrochemical Company (SNEP), the main national producer. This request is based on suspicions of dumping practices, accusing Egyptian exporters of selling their product at artificially low prices, thus creating unfair competition on the Moroccan market. Faced with this situation, the Moroccan authorities have opened an investigation to assess the extent of these practices and determine whether Egyptian imports seriously affect the local industry.
The scale of the phenomenon is also confirmed by an analysis of the evolution of PVC import volumes from Egypt. Indeed, since 2020, we have observed a significant increase in Egyptian imports of PVC. In absolute terms, imports have grown impressively, from 16,596 tonnes in 2020 to 52,116 tonnes in 2023, an increase of almost 215%. Moreover, in 2024, Egyptian imports continued to increase, reaching 32,642 tonnes in the first half of the year, compared to 15,325 tonnes for the same period the previous year. This rapid growth in import volumes has had direct repercussions on the Moroccan market, with an increasing share of Egyptian PVC in national consumption, which increased from 15% in 2020 to 41% in 2023.
At the same time, imports from Egypt have taken an increasingly important proportion in the Moroccan market. In 2023, they represented 41% of total PVC consumption in Morocco, and this share continued to grow in 2024. This phenomenon is all the more worrying since, according to SNEP, this continued increase in imports of Egyptian PVC has had a direct and negative impact on the performance of national production. Moroccan producers find themselves faced with unfair competition, which has caused a drop in profitability, as well as difficulties in maintaining employment and investments in the industry.
