In contrast to the UK where yesterday the Chancellor was gloomily predicting a contraction in the UK economy, Morocco’s 2009 economic growth should stand at 5.2%, said the Centre Marocain de Conjoncture (CMC)* in its latest publication dedicated to the financial turmoil. Analysing the Moroccan economic situation, the Centre underlined, however, that if the crisis deteriorates, this year’s growth would not exceed 4.8%, to fall to 4% in 2010.  The French-language publication also stressed that Morocco’s financial sector has not been directly affected by this crisis.

“At the beginning of the crisis many questions concerning the Moroccan financial sector were raised, but objective data released later showed that the national financial system will not be affected, directly, by the crisis,” it pointed out.

As to the real estate sector, the CMC’s stressed that this sector operates in a context marked by a clear deceleration, growing only by 9.4% in the last quarter of 2008.

The CMC also reported that tourism receipts fell by 3.5% but there was an increase in terms of visits, suggesting that visitors are being more careful with their money in the present climate.

Overall, in the context of the global economic turmoil, the signals from Morocco suggest that whilst it will inevitably be affected by the global economic problems (in terms of reduced tourist spending and remittances from Moroccan ex-pats) the basic health of the economy is extremely robust and this situation places Morocco in a great situation to exploit the economic upturn.

Motor racing enthusiasts in Morocco and around the world are keenly awaiting the first Marrakech Touring Car GP which runs from 1-3 May 2009. The ” Race of Morocco” is the only leg of the FIA championship to be staged in Africa.

The track location, along Mohammed VI and Ourika Avenues, with its exotic backdrop between the red city’s legendary walls and the snow-capped Atlas Mountains in the distance, will quickly make it one of the most attractive circuits in the world. Not only will it directly attract more tourists to Marrakech on race days but the images shown around the world will almost certainly increase demand for property in Marrakech.

The circuit layout will allow for fast and challenging driving, giving fans and TV audiences an exciting performance. So be sure to tune into Eurosport Europe for more coverage.

See the website here

Morocco’s flag carrier Royal Air Maroc (RAM) will order six new planes this month despite the bleak outlook for business travel during the global economic downturn, its chief executive said on Thursday.

Royal Air Maroc, one of the most profitable airlines in North Africa, recognises that despite a downturn in global demand there will be an increase in passenger numbers to Morocco due to the opening of many new tourist projects as well as the growing popularity of property in Morocco for foreign buyers.

It is benefiting from the government’s policy to increase tourism to 10 million visitors by 2010 from 8 million in 2008. The government is also encouraging the expansion of air transport, including low-cost flights.

Morocco signed an Open Skies agreement with the European Union in 2006 allowing new airline competitors, including low-budget carriers such as Ryanair and easyJet.

“We will put an order for six planes. We will sign the order deal by the end of this month,” Benhima told a business conference in the North African country’s commercial capital Casablanca.

The Open Skies agreement spurred passenger traffic to grow by between 16 percent and 19 percent per year since 2006. Passenger traffic grew to 11.2 million in 2008 from 5.5 million in 2006, Benhima added.

RAM, which draws more than 70 percent of its revenue from European markets, and its low-cost Atlas Bleu subsidiary must embrace a different strategy than its competitors.

“Our competitors are strong with big fleets. We can not take them on with similar offers and promotions. We have to distinguish our business,” he added.

Benhima said RAM will beef up its routes inside Morocco and expand further its growing operations in Africa.

The pictures below were added to skyscrapercity.com by user timo9. They show the resort looking ready to open as schedules in June 2009.

Above : The coastline on the Mediterranean coast of Morocco has fantastic unspoilt beaches. This picture shows the beach close to Saidia with the Chafarinas Islands just offshore.

Above : The first beach club opened in summer 2008 and was situated close to the 1,350 berth marina in Saidia.

Above : The promenade in Saidia runs the entire length of the resort (6km) and it is already possible to imagine the crowds strolling along enjoying the warm evening air.

Above : The five star Barcelo Hotel is the most luxurious hotel on the Saidia resort. It is a joint venture between the Barcelo chain and the royal family of Morocco. The concept is for it to be one of the most visually arresting and impressive hotels on the Med and so it will act as a beacon for the resort attracting media interest and boosting the status in the same way that the Borj al Arab did for Dubai.

Morocco’s economy is likely to grow by 6.6 percent in the first quarter, according to government figures recently released. This good news comes on the back of an IMF report highlighting Morocco’s impressive economic performance in 2008.

The International Monetary Fund stated that due to the sound financial sector in the country it was well placed to continue its progress.   The exchange rate peg (Dirham to euro and dollar), according to the IMF, has served as an anchor of macro-economic stability, and its level appears broadly in line with fundamentals required to maintain economic performance.
Indeed, the Moroccan banks are now generally well-provisioned and have little in the way of foreign exposure on either the asset or the liability side, minimizing the transmission of risks from global financial markets to the real economy, and making the banking system resilient to shocks. Moroccan banks are not exposed to the kind of products at the heart of the subprime crisis and are in a strong position after years of improving results. Whilst the central Bank Al-Maghrib (now autonomous from government) works to control money supply and credit and so also plays a crucial role in controlling inflation.

At a recent meeting in Rabat the Moroccan government announced annual funding of 190 million euros from the European Union for 2009 as part of the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP). The ENP seeks to bolster the finances and encourage economic growth in countries that border the EU.

Morocco has advanced status within the Union, which exceeds partnership but below EU membership and this means that it receives the lion’s share of funding from the ENP.

The EU rightly recognises that a healthy Morocco is crucial to economic development in the EU as it will become not only a major production area for many EU companies but also as it represents a rapidly growing market on the doorstep of Europe. Many EU firms have used their links with governments to pitch for projects (such as the TGV) and most new infrastructure projects in Morocco have some element of foreign management or backing.

Nov 2008 - Morocco and France signed a $792m protocol to finance the rolling stock and railway equipments of Casablanca-Tangier high-speed train (TGV).

The agreement was signed by Moroccan minister of Economy and Finance, Salaheddine Mezouar and French Secretary of State for Foreign Trade, Anne-Marie Idrac.

The original Protocol of Understanding on the TGV between Casablanca and Tangier was signed in Marrakech in October 2007, under the chairmanship of King Mohammed VI and French President Nicolas Sarkozy and is part of a country wide plan to link all the major cities with high speed links.

The TGV project, which provides for the construction of a high-speed line (from 200 to 320 km/hour), will reduce travel time between Tangier and Casablanca to 2 hours and 10 minutes instead of current 5 hours and 45 minutes.

This is great news for Tangiers property investors as a high speed link between the country’s two major business hubs will undoubtly have an upward effect on prices in the northern city of Tangier.

At  meeting in Palma, Mallorca last week all the major players in the fabulous five star resort “Mediterrania Saidia” signed a memorandum of understanding that the resort will be ready by June 2009. Under the agreement FADESA Maroc will deliver the two hotels it’s currently working on in March and April next year – giving ample time to train staff before the summer rush.

Harbourside cafes are already open

An extensive marketing plan for the resort was also agreed and will be implemented in conjunction with the Moroccan Tourism Board and hotel operators, Barcelo and Iberostar. Michael Kent of Moroccan Sands added “We been extremely impressed by the recent progress in Saidia , the direct motorway link to the airport is complete and I think the first visitors will be bowled over by what’s on offer. We’ve been involved with Saidia from the start and it’s tremendously rewarding when milestones in the project such as this are reached.

A frequent fear of many overseas buyers is that as economic conditions tighten it will become harder to make a rental return from their investment. Whilst this may be true in certain overhyped destinations such as Bulgaria and Dubai it certainly isn’t true in Morocco.

Since colonial times the French influence remains strong

This is because tourist numbers to Morocco are dominated by the French who make up nearly 70% of all arrivals and France is currently the only eurozone country still experiencing growth in the last quarter. Even if the French economy takes a downturn the level of state benefits is such that most families will continue to holiday as normal and the opening of ever cheap ways to travel between the two countries will enhance this further.

Recent evidence from the UK also suggests that Morocco is well placed to benefit as respondents to a survey suggested that it would be the traditional “bucket and spade resorts” on the Costas which would be worst hit as they were perceived as the most overpriced. Morocco was viewed favourably as it offered an exotic destination with value for money – a combination most travel industry experts believe will become increasingly attractive in the future.

In addition to their strategic plans “Vision 2010” and the Plan Azur the Moroccan government announced on 18th November a further $95 million dollars for the tourism sector. This massive amount dwarfs anything spent elsewhere and should be viewed as a further sign of confidence in the long term aspirations of Morocco.

Michael Kent, Managing Director of leading Moroccan property company Moroccan Sands commented, “ This once again shows why Morocco is the only overseas destination that deserves serious consideration from investors. There’s such an enormous amount of investment flowing into the country from the Gulf and Europe that growth, even in these constrained times.”

Indeed the figures support this assertion – for whilst most of Europe and the US is forecasting minimal or even negative growth Morocco predicts a year of continued growth, with the latest estimates (Oct 2008) at around 5.8%. Indeed this figure could be set to rise once the lower cost of fuel filters down through the economy.

Mohammed Boussaid, the Moroccan Minister of Tourism, also added that due to the policies put in place by the government (such as developing resorts in virgin areas and the new flight route agreements) would enable Morocco to survive and prosper in these difficult times.

Which is all good news for people buying property in Morocco as greater prosperity will stimulate not only the domestic market but also continue to attract overseas buyers.