Morocco plans to raise at least $1 billion from an international bond sale this year, ending an approximately five-year hiatus, and switch to a policy of more consistent offerings to finance its broader economic overhaul programme.
The North African kingdom - the region’s only investment grade sovereign - has mandated a consortium of banks for the bond sale, its first since 2014, said Finance and Economy Minister Mohamed Benchaaboun. It also plans to go to the market again in 2020 amid efforts to hold more consistent sales, he said.
King Mohammed last year told the government to come up with a new growth model for the $105 billion economy as it steps up a crackdown on tax evasion. That directive has taken on even more urgency as the eruption of unrest in neighbouring Algeria sends a clear message about how a toxic mix of high youth unemployment and sputtering growth could snowball out of control.
The sale will take place “as soon as conditions permit it this year,” Mr Benchaaboun said at the weekend in Marrakesh, declining to elaborate further on the timing.
The former chief executive of Banque Centrale Populaire, Morocco’s second-biggest lender, said the country would continue to tap the market “in the most natural manner because debt, in essence, depreciates, and so you have evidently to build up the share of external financing in the overall debt”,
The plan marks a shift in strategy from his predecessor, Mohamed Boussaid, who was relatively reluctant to turn to the international market, Bloomberg said.
The proposed shift comes as authorities review how state-owned enterprises can finance the nation’s development plans and make them less reliant on government financing. As it stands now, the debt is counted as quasi-sovereign, limiting the administration’s room to manoeuvre.
Morocco’s neighbour Egypt has gone to the international bond market twice in the past few months, most recently with a 2 billion euro offer.
“When you are regularly present in the international bond market you set your pricing target for the debt you want to raise, and evidently you also move faster in the mobilisation of financing on behalf of the lenders because they know you,” Mr Benchaaboun said.
Moroccan officials have struggled to revive growth that has been squeezed over the past two years by drought and weak consumer demand.
The banking sector has also suffered.
BMCE Bank, one ofMorocco's largest lenders, reported this month a 10 per cent fall in its 2018 net profit attributable to shareholders due to a drop in activities in its African branches, Reuters reported.
Profit stood at 1.83 billion Moroccan dirhams ($190 mln) in 2018, down from 2.03bn dirhams in 2017.
African branches accounted for 46 per cent of profits, while Morocco and Europe represented 48 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively.
Net banking income dropped 1 per cent to 13.23bn dirhams, while the cost of risk rose 2 per cent to 1.83bn dirhams.
The International Monetary Fund, in the latest review of its precautionary and liquidity line arrangement with the country earlier this month, said that “improved fiscal management and economic diversification” have made the economy more resilient, though unemployment remains high, especially among younger Moroccans.
The government needs to press on with the changes it’s making “in order to increase productivity gains, create jobs, and raise growth potential” in line with its medium-term objectives, the Washington-based fund said in an April 2 report.
“The growth story can’t be summed up in one quarter,” Mr Benchaaboun said, pointing to the impact this year of drought on the country’s labour-intensive agricultural sector and “a non-agricultural GDP that is posting good growth levels.”
The government is sticking to its budgeted projection of 3.2 per cent growth, he said. The central bank last month cut the growth projection for 2019 to 2.7 per cent, citing mostly lower farming output.
Among the measures the government is taking to boost growth is a draft bill - now with parliament - to protect minority rights in corporations, as well as the launch later this year of the first real-estate investment trust, or REITs, which he said would “provide a fundamental source of financing for businesses across the board.”
“The repercussions will not be felt overnight,” Mr Benchaaboun said, stressing that authorities are confident the measures would boost growth and create jobs.
The specs
Engine: 5.2-litre V10
Power: 640hp at 8,000rpm
Torque: 565Nm at 6,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: From Dh1 million
On sale: Q3 or Q4 2022
Gertrude Bell's life in focus
A feature film
At one point, two feature films were in the works, but only German director Werner Herzog’s project starring Nicole Kidman would be made. While there were high hopes he would do a worthy job of directing the biopic, when Queen of the Desert arrived in 2015 it was a disappointment. Critics panned the film, in which Herzog largely glossed over Bell’s political work in favour of her ill-fated romances.
A documentary
A project that did do justice to Bell arrived the next year: Sabine Krayenbuhl and Zeva Oelbaum’s Letters from Baghdad: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Gertrude Bell. Drawing on more than 1,000 pieces of archival footage, 1,700 documents and 1,600 letters, the filmmakers painstakingly pieced together a compelling narrative that managed to convey both the depth of Bell’s experience and her tortured love life.
Books, letters and archives
Two biographies have been written about Bell, and both are worth reading: Georgina Howell’s 2006 book Queen of the Desert and Janet Wallach’s 1996 effort Desert Queen. Bell published several books documenting her travels and there are also several volumes of her letters, although they are hard to find in print. Original documents are housed at the Gertrude Bell Archive at the University of Newcastle, which has an online catalogue.
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
WWE World Heavyweight Championship AJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura
Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt
Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba
TWISTERS
Director: Lee Isaac Chung
Starring: Glen Powell, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos
Rating: 2.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Ashes
Results
First Test, Brisbane: Australia won by 10 wickets
Second Test, Adelaide: Australia won by 120 runs
Third Test, Perth: Australia won by an innings and 41 runs
Fourth Test: Melbourne: Drawn
Fifth Test: Australia won by an innings and 123 runs
Uefa Champions League play-off
First leg: Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Ajax v Dynamo Kiev
Second leg: Tuesday, August 28, 11pm (UAE)
Dynamo Kiev v Ajax
Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
Uefa Nations League: How it Works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
The years Ramadan fell in May
'THE WORST THING YOU CAN EAT'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
Brief scores:
Toss: Sindhis, elected to field first
Kerala Knights 103-7 (10 ov)
Parnell 59 not out; Tambe 5-15
Sindhis 104-1 (7.4 ov)
Watson 50 not out, Devcich 49
OPINIONS ON PALESTINE & ISRAEL
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
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RESULTS
5pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival Purebred Arabian Cup Conditions (PA) Dh 200,000 (Turf) 1,600m
Winner: Hameem, Adrie de Vries (jockey), Abdallah Al Hammadi (trainer)
5.30pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Cup Conditions (PA) Dh 200,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Winked, Connor Beasley, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Cup Listed (TB) Dh 380,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Boerhan, Ryan Curatolo, Nicholas Bachalard
6.30pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Group 3 (PA) Dh 500,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: AF Alwajel, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
7pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Jewel Crown Group 1 (PA) Dh 5,000,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Messi, Pat Dobbs, Timo Keersmaekers
7.30pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival Handicap (PA) Dh 150,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Harrab, Ryan Curatolo, Jean de Roualle
8pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 100,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: AF Alareeq, Connor Beasley, Ahmed Al Mehairbi
The Book of Collateral Damage
Sinan Antoon
(Yale University Press)
