Fitch affirms Morocco

Fitch Ratings said it affirmed the Kingdom of Morocco's long-term foreign- and local-currency issuer default ratings at BBB- and BBB, respectively. The short-term foreign-currency issuer default rating was affirmed at F3 and country ceiling at BBB.

According to Fitch, the affirmation reflects the country's resilient net external creditor position, which continues to exceed the peer group median despite the emergence of a small current account deficit last year.

The rating is also supported by the continuing shift of the economy toward higher-value-added activities, which has translated into sustained growth of non-agricultural GDP, the agency said.

Credit weaknesses are relatively high public debt and an expected widening in the budget deficit this year due to increased subsidy costs, Fitch said. Ratings also consider persistent poverty in rural areas and relatively weak social indicators.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.