Spanish exports to Algeria witnessed a notable increase in the early months of 2025, after more than two years of restrictions imposed by Algiers against Spanish goods in response to Madrid’s support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as a solution to the Sahara dispute.
According to data published by Algerian outlet TSA and relayed by Courrier International, Spanish exports to Algeria rose by 162% between January and May 2025, reaching a total value of around €900 million.
Jamal Eddine Bouabdallah, President of the Spanish-Algerian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, explained that this surge was “logical” following the resumption of trade flows, noting that exchanges had been almost completely halted until November 2024, with the exception of a few limited products such as meat and chicks.
He added that this trend reflects a relative return to pre-crisis levels, signaling that Algeria is once again opening its doors to Spanish exports, even though Madrid has not shifted its political stance on the Sahara issue — a fact acknowledged by Algerian media and international reports.
In this context, Spanish newspaper El Independiente reported that Algeria’s central bank had taken the initiative in November 2024 to lift restrictions on bilateral trade, which allowed for the revival of commercial activity, while Algiers continued to honor its commitments to supply gas to Spain throughout the crisis.
The Spanish daily further noted that despite this recovery in trade relations, political ties remain marked by “reservation,” given the persisting dispute between the Algerian authorities and Pedro Sánchez’s government over Spain’s support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan.
Courrier International underlined that Algerian gas continues to play a central role in bilateral relations, meeting between 26% and 30% of Spain’s market needs in June through the Medgaz pipeline linking Beni Saf in Algeria to Almería in Spain.
Alongside gas, the ceramics sector has emerged as one of the direct beneficiaries of this easing, with Algeria importing equipment, machinery, and raw materials for ceramic production from Spain worth nearly €44.6 million in the first five months of 2025, according to Algerian newspaper Echorouk.
It is worth recalling that when Algeria restored its ambassador to Madrid in November 2023 and announced the resumption of diplomatic channels, it justified the move by claiming that Spain had “corrected” its position on the Sahara.
However, the reality on the ground tells a different story, as the Spanish government has not retreated from its support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan, but rather reaffirmed its view of the initiative as “the most serious and realistic” solution to the dispute. This suggests that Algeria’s justifications were more about projecting a domestic political gain than reflecting any real shift in Madrid’s stance.
The persistence of political reservations between the two countries, despite the easing of trade, confirms that Algeria’s narrative of a “Spanish policy reversal” was merely a temporary pretext to justify the restoration of diplomatic relations, while the political crisis remains unresolved without any genuine breakthrough.
