Morocco Competition Council said it found no evidence of anti-competitive behaviour in the country’s fuel market, even as pump prices climbed steadily through late March and early April in line with global energy trends.
In a detailed note covering the period from March 16 to April 1, the council said it detected no signs of collusion among fuel distributors in the diesel and gasoline segments, despite continued increases at the pump driven by higher international prices.
The findings extend an earlier review for March 1 to 16, when global refined fuel prices surged amid geopolitical tensions and volatility in energy markets.
While clearing operators of anti-competitive practices, the council pointed to a recurring pattern in which companies adjust prices on the same dates and by similar margins. It said this behaviour, although not constituting collusion, can reduce pricing flexibility and slow the transmission of international price movements to domestic consumers.
According to the council, this synchronised pricing approach partly reflects legacy practices from Morocco’s former regulated fuel pricing system, when revisions typically took place on the 1st and 16th of each month.
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“In a liberalised market, maintaining such a timetable is becoming less relevant,” the council said, urging operators to adopt more independent and responsive pricing strategies.
It called on fuel distributors to base their pricing decisions more closely on individual factors such as supply frequency, procurement contracts, stock levels and broader commercial strategies, while maintaining overall market stability.
The council’s analysis also highlighted differences in how international price changes are reflected across fuel types, pointing to an ongoing asymmetry between diesel and gasoline pricing.
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For diesel, the pass-through of global price movements remained partial over the full review period from March 1 to April 1. The council estimated a cumulative gap of around 1.35 dirhams ($0.15) per litre between international benchmark increases and domestic pump prices.
However, it noted that the situation improved during the second half of the period, suggesting that the lag in adjusting domestic diesel prices had begun to narrow.
Gasoline prices, by contrast, showed a different pattern. Over the same timeframe, increases at the pump exceeded movements in international quotations, resulting in a positive gap of approximately 0.33 dirhams ($0.036) per litre.
The council said this divergence underscores persistent differences in pricing dynamics between the two fuels, even though both are influenced by the same upward pressure from global markets.
At the retail level, motorists have felt the impact of these trends. Since the start of April, fuel distributors have implemented further price increases, with diesel reaching about 14.52 dirhams ($1.57) per litre and gasoline around 15.48 dirhams ($1.67), according to local reports.
The council said the observed pricing patterns reflect the complexity of Morocco’s liberalised fuel market, where multiple factors — including international costs, logistics and company strategies — shape final pump prices.
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It added that while the absence of collusion is a positive signal for market competition, the persistence of synchronised pricing behaviour raises questions about how effectively competition is functioning in practice.
For consumers, the outcome has been familiar: rising fuel costs that do not always move in lockstep with global price trends, depending on the product.
The issue remains sensitive in Morocco, where fuel price liberalisation has long been a subject of public debate, particularly during periods of sharp increases in global oil prices.
The council said continued monitoring of the market would be necessary to ensure transparency and fair competition, especially as external pressures remain elevated.
Global oil markets have remained under strain in recent months due to ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, including disruptions to key shipping routes and supply chains.
These developments have contributed to sustained upward pressure on refined fuel prices worldwide, with knock-on effects in import-dependent countries such as Morocco.
Analysts say that as long as global volatility persists, domestic fuel prices are likely to remain sensitive to external shocks, keeping scrutiny on pricing practices and market dynamics firmly in place.
