Business Failures: The Reasons Behind an Unexpected Improvement

Indicators of the good health of the national economy are multiplying. The latest example: business failures have significantly declined. According to the firm Inforisk, corporate business failures recorded in 2025 reached 15,307, down 3.3% compared to 2024, putting an end to a series of four consecutive years of increases since the outbreak of the Covid health crisis.

The decline in failures in Morocco also contrasts with global data highlighted in the Dun & Bradstreet Global Bankruptcy Report 2025. According to this report, global bankruptcies increased by 17% in 2025.

The majority (62%) of the 37 countries monitored by the global Dun & Bradstreet network experienced an increase in corporate bankruptcies last year, while 14 countries, including Morocco, recorded a decrease in business failures.

Countries such as Spain and France experienced a sharp increase in bankruptcies in 2025, with respective rises of 26% and 17%. “This is the first time in 10 years (excluding the Covid period) that Morocco has recorded a negative growth rate in business failures, and a rate lower than the global average,” Inforisk emphasized in its report.

Very favorable macroeconomic conditions

The factors explaining this decline are primarily local. They are generally linked to the macroeconomic improvement Morocco has been experiencing for several months. “At the international level, the situation is complicated, but in Morocco there are very positive factors.

Gross domestic product grew by nearly 5% in 2025, boosted by several elements such as rainfall at the beginning and end of 2025, which supported agricultural growth, as well as the 20 million tourists who boosted the entire tourism sector, particularly hotels, restaurants, transport, vehicle rentals, etc.,” immediately notes Amine Diouri, Director of Products, Studies & Communication at Inforisk.

He also points out that it is precisely companies operating within the tourism sector ecosystem that recorded the largest declines in business failures. The vehicle rental activity, for instance, posted an 18% drop in failures.

Diouri also cites relatively cheap oil in 2025, with prices hovering around 60 dollars per barrel, as a factor that supported the growth of industrial and transport companies.

This is combined with inflation limited to 0.8%, which supports household consumption. Preparations for the 2030 World Cup, for their part, are boosting public investment and channeling funds into sectors such as construction. Construction activities, moreover, recorded a significant 22% decrease in business failures.

The positive effects of the law on payment deadlines

From a microeconomic perspective, “the business climate has also contributed to the general sense of optimism,” our interlocutor adds.

The extension of the law on payment deadlines to companies is beginning to produce effects on corporate cash flow. “Introduced in 2023 to put an end to chronic payment delays between companies, Law 69‑21 is beginning to spread from large companies to SMEs, and from SMEs to very small enterprises.

This is very important, because it should be remembered that for more than 40% of business failures, the main factor is the extension of payment deadlines,” the expert emphasizes.

Regarding prospects, the sharp decline in failures during the last quarter of 2025 (-12% compared with the fourth quarter of 2024) suggests that the decrease may continue.

For Diouri, the organization of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) was one of the factors that accentuated the decline in failures, within a favorable economic climate. Can such a 12% decrease be replicated throughout the entire year of 2026? “It is still too early to say,” replies Diouri. Certainly, he adds, the positive internal factors mentioned will remain the same in 2026, but internationally there are reasons to remain cautious.

“A conflict in the Middle East involving Iran and the United States could drive up energy prices sharply, with a barrel exceeding 100 dollars, impacting several sectors in Morocco, particularly transport and industry.”

This is why Inforisk forecasts a stabilization in the pace of business failures in 2026, at around 15,300 cases. “However, if no major international conflict occurs, we could have a very good year in 2026. For now, caution,” he concludes.

Casablanca‑Settat, the epicenter of business failures

Geographically, the Casablanca‑Settat region concentrates the largest number of business failures, with 4,410 cases, representing 29% of the national total. It is followed by Rabat‑Salé‑Kénitra, which recorded 2,327 failures, representing 15% of the overall total.

The Fès‑Meknès region ranks third with 1,769 failing companies, or 12% of the total, closely followed by Tanger‑Tétouan‑Al Hoceima, which recorded 1,627 cases, the equivalent of 11%. The Marrakech‑Safi region comes in fifth place with 1,413 failures, representing 9% of the total.

Dakhla‑Oued Eddahab is the region that experienced the largest increase in failures, with a jump of 50% in 2025. Béni Mellal‑Khénifra, for its part, recorded the largest decline (-17%).

It should be noted that 98.8% of the failures concern very small enterprises. The median age of companies is five years, with a median share capital of 100,000 dirhams.

Activities that are doing well and those that are struggling

Inforisk’s report shows that some sectors are performing much better than others. The sectors most affected by failures in 2025 were education (+2%), healthcare (+1%), and fishing (+1%). Conversely, the least affected sectors were extractive industries (-22%), agriculture (-11%), and transport (-11%).

In terms of activities, the events industry recorded the largest increase in failures (+39%). Also affected were real estate agencies (+31%), perfume distribution (+29%), newspaper and book distribution (+22%), as well as real estate dealers (+11%).

Other sectors stand out for a notable decrease in failures, such as the distribution of agricultural equipment (-24%), the construction sector (-22%), and bakery‑pastry businesses (-20%).

Overall, trade remains the sector most affected, accounting for 33% of failures, ahead of real estate (21%), construction and public works (14%), transport (8%), and manufacturing industries (7%).