Bank Al Maghrib. DAVID RODRIGUES / LE DESK
Credit to the non-financial sector should record positive growth of 1.9% in 2020 before increasing by 2.6% next year, according to the Systemic Risk Coordination and Monitoring Committee (CCSRS), meeting Monday at Rabat.
“Despite a clear slowdown in activity expected in 2020, the development of credit to the non-financial sector should remain positive, with growth of 1.9% in 2020 and 2.6% in 2021, in favor various actions to support economic recovery and central bank flexibility measures, ”said Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM) in a press release sanctioning the work of this 11th meeting of the CCSRS.
To this end, in terms of monetary policy, the Central Bank particularly made two cuts in the key rate from 2.25% to 2% in March and then to 1.50% in June 2020 and to the full release of the bank account. reserve for the benefit of banks, recalls the same source.
In the same vein, it activated all the refinancing instruments available in dirhams and in foreign currencies and extended the list of assets admitted in return for refinancing granted to banks.
Concomitantly, BAM strengthened its specific refinancing program for the benefit of very small, small and medium-sized enterprises (TPME), by integrating, in addition to investment loans, cash loans and increasing the frequency of refinancing operations .
From a prudential point of view and in order to further increase the banks’ capacity to finance the economy, Bank Al-Maghrib temporarily eased certain requirements in force.
In addition, the CCSRS noted that bank loans to non-financial businesses (NFEs) resumed in 2019 with an increase of 5.4% after a slowdown in 2018 of 1.2%, mainly driven by private businesses. The latter saw the rate of their loans further accelerate at the end of April 2020 to almost 10%.
The default rate for NFEs has remained around 10%, an already high level which is likely to worsen due to the rise in risks linked to the pandemic.
At this meeting, the committee approved the 2019 financial stability report and its supplement dedicated to the preliminary analysis of the impact of the crisis linked to the pandemic of the new coronavirus (Covid-19) on the national financial sector.
It also examined the systemic risks weighing on the financial system in the current context, analyzed the progress of the inter-authorities roadmap for financial stability 2019-2021 and reviewed the conclusions of the consultation meetings representatives of the Committee held weekly since the start of the health crisis as well as monitoring indicators which have not so far revealed any particular concerns about financial stability.
–
