Marruecos alega obstáculos económicos para el retraso en la liberalización del dírham

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is pressing Rabat for the liberalisation of the Moroccan dirham. The initiative launched in 2018 by the Central Bank of Morocco began to implement a programme that guaranteed the liberalisation of the dirham, albeit gradually. The first changes served to shift the currency's fluctuation from 0.3% four years ago to 2.5% up and down. Now, the IMF is calling for a new step forward by Morocco, using the exponential rise in inflation this year as an excuse.
 
However, Rabat does not seem to be in a hurry to carry out this process. Abdellatif Al-Jawahiri, governor of the Moroccan Central Bank, believes that "the price of the dirham is not exaggerated, and is in line with the country's economic situation". This does not mean that the Alawi kingdom is not thinking of carrying out this liberalisation. In fact, Al-Jawari himself has assured that more measures could be taken, but he asks the Fund to stop putting pressure on this aspect. He also urges caution as "the exchange rate or the interest rate could get us into trouble".

The governor of the Central Bank of Morocco explained some of the reasons that are causing concern in the Kingdom and why this liberalisation, even if it can be done, must be carried out with caution. One of them is the distribution of companies in Morocco. 90% are small companies and 9% are medium-sized, so, as he explains, the country might "not be prepared to move the exchange rate or increase the interest rate at an accelerated pace". This is why Rabat still believes that "it is not the right time", especially given the current crisis in the world.
 
It is precisely this crisis that worries Morocco and why they are not convinced to liberalise the exchange rate immediately. "Our main objective is for the current crisis to pass, as we stress that you should not look at things only from the perspective of the big economies, as each market has its own particularity," Al-Jawahiri said. It should also be noted that when the move to 2.5% dirham liberalisation was made, the kingdom's Ministry of Economy and Finance defended it as a measure that aimed to "strengthen the immunity of the local economy from external shocks, support its competitiveness and contribute to the level of growth".

The issue of dirham liberalisation is not the only one hanging over the Moroccan economy. The rise in interest rates is another issue that is expected to be addressed in the coming days but, given the volatile situation, cannot be taken for granted. Al-Jawahiri assures that the decision on raising interest rates has not been taken and that taking proactive action at a time like the present is very difficult for any economy.
 
Inflation is one of the most worrying threats, not only in Rabat, but worldwide. Morocco has seen inflation soar in just one year, and figures at the end of August put it at 8% a year, the highest since 1992. This figure becomes even more significant when one takes into account that during the first eight months of this year, the percentage had remained below 6%, showing how inflation has soared during August, and how difficult it is to take decisions as important as currency liberalisation, even under constant pressure from the IMF.