Morocco’s Private Sector Lending Surges 5.2% Despite Economic Challenges

This 5.2% increase is explained by a "significant" acceleration in lending to private companies, the central bank said in its report on banking supervision. Outstanding loans to private companies increased by 7.8%. In contrast, loans to households recorded a slowdown of 0.9%. This slowdown is due to a near-halt in the production of housing loans and consumer credit during the lockdown period.

"The developments in loans by purpose confirm this overall analysis. Cash loans grew in the double digits in the first half, at 10.4%. Housing loans only grew by 0.4% while consumer loans had a negative trend at -2.3%," said Hiba Zahoui, head of the banking supervision department at Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM).

Deposits for the first six months of 2020 are up slightly by 3.9%, reflecting an acceleration of 6.6% in deposits from resident individuals and 1.5% from Moroccans living abroad (MRE).