First Independent Mena Newspaper
Morocco’s state-owned phosphates giant (OCP) said its revenues grew 14% in 2017 to reach 48.5 billion dirhams compared to 42.48 billion in 2016. OCP’s phosphates rock sales increased 40% while the group’s revenues from selling fertilizers jumped 24% compared to 2016. This performance helped the OCP offset a fall in international prices, the company said […]
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank’s private sector arm, said it plans to invest $373 million in Maghreb nations, mostly in Morocco and Tunisia as the two nations cut spending to reduce budget deficits. IFC investments in the region are designed to help the two North African governments form private-public partnerships to help […]
King Mohammed VI of Morocco has described the signing this Wednesday of the agreement setting up the African Continental Free Trade Area as a defining moment in history and a landmark event, which attests to African States’ shared determination to build an Africa for the future. In a speech to the Extraordinary Summit of the […]
Morocco, which rejoined the African Union last year, signed this Wednesday the agreement launching the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The signing ceremony took place at the 10th Extraordinary Summit of the African Union on AfCFTA convened in Kigali, Rwanda. The AfCFTA was inked by Head of Moroccan Government Saâd Eddine El Othmani, who […]
Morocco’s central bank, Bank Al Maghrib, said growth will reach 3.3% in 2018 and 3.5% in 2019, down from 4% last year. The bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.25%, as the financial conditions look stable since the launch of the gradual dirham float last January. Inflation was expected to reach 1.8% on […]
Spanish car parts maker, Ficosa, will start operating its Moroccan plant specializing in producing in-vehicle cameras on March 20, the company said. The Catalonia-based Ficosa, which has been sold to Japan’s Panasonic last July, has completed the plant for a total cost of €30 million. The plant, which will offer 800 direct jobs by 2020, […]
Few weeks after the launch of the gradual Dirham float, The International Monetary Fund has advised Morocco to maintain the current reform pace with a view to strengthening the economy’s competitiveness. “Unlike other emerging economies, Morocco didn’t loosen currency restrictions under pressure, so authorities can take their time with future steps,” Nicolas Blancher, the IMF’s […]
Edita Food Industries SAE (EFID) has announced plans to set up snack food factory in Morocco. Edita, which has teamed up with Dislog Group in Morocco, seeks to reinforce its expansion plans and strengthen its position in the snacks market. Last December, Edita’s chairman and CEO Hani Berzi said that commercial operations will begin in […]
Credit rating agency Moody’s downgraded Tunisia’s credit rating to B2 against the backdrop of deteriorating fiscal situation, complicating the government’s plans to borrow from international lenders. Moody’s cut Tunisia’s rating by one notch to B2– five levels below investment grade and on a par with Argentina, Nigeria, Cameroon and Kenya. Moody’s rating downgrade will complicate […]
Spanish car component manufacturer, Teknia Group, has opened a new plant in Tangier to boost its production capacity. The new factory, which replaces an existing plant set up by the group in 2011, is built over a surface area of 2,700 square meters, the Group said in a statement. The Spanish group operates in the […]