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Unemployment Drops in Morocco to 8.5%

Employees work at a factory operated by Somaca in Tangiers, file. REUTERS/Stringer
Employees work at a factory operated by Somaca in Tangiers, file. REUTERS/Stringer
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Unemployment Drops in Morocco to 8.5%

Employees work at a factory operated by Somaca in Tangiers, file. REUTERS/Stringer
Employees work at a factory operated by Somaca in Tangiers, file. REUTERS/Stringer

The unemployment rate in Morocco reached 8.5 percent at the end of June after it was at 9.1 percent last year, Reuters reported, quoting the Kingdom’s High Commission of Planning.

HCP said that the job market was marked by a “further decline” in employment rates in cities, however, rural areas saw a rise of unemployment due to aridity.

“The number of unemployed people has declined from 1.1 million to 1.03 million following a drop of 77,000 in unemployed people,” the HCP said.

The report published on Wednesday showed that Morocco’s national economy created 7,000 job opportunities in the second quarter of 2019 compared to the much higher 117,000 in the same period in 2018.

The unemployed rate in urban areas dropped around 84,000 while it rose approximately 7,000 in rural areas. The unemployment rate in urban areas declined from 13.7 percent to 12.4 percent. , however, it rose in rural areas to 3.3 percent from 3 percent.

The Moroccan economy created during this period 210,000 jobs and lost 203, added the report.

It added that the services sector created 167,000 jobs, while industrial sectors created 43,000 jobs. The construction sector lost 27,000 jobs at the national level due to the continuous real estate crisis, while the agricultural sector lost 176,000 jobs due to aridity.

In the statement, the agency said that 132,000 jobs were gained in cities while only 125,000 were provided in rural areas.

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IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
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IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved the third review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 billion bailout on Saturday but warned that the economy remains vulnerable.
In a statement, the global lender said it would release about $333 million, bringing total funding to around $1.3 billion, to the crisis-hit South Asian nation. It said signs of an economic recovery were emerging, Reuters reported.
In a note of caution, it said "the critical next steps are to complete the commercial debt restructuring, finalize bilateral agreements with official creditors along the lines of the accord with the Official Creditor Committee and implement the terms of the other agreements. This will help restore Sri Lanka's debt sustainability."
Cash-strapped Sri Lanka plunged into its worst financial crisis in more than seven decades in 2022 with a severe dollar shortage sending inflation soaring to 70%, its currency to record lows and its economy contracting by 7.3% during the worst of the fallout and by 2.3% last year.
"Maintaining macroeconomic stability and restoring debt sustainability are key to securing Sri Lanka's prosperity and require persevering with responsible fiscal policy," the IMF said.
The IMF bailout secured in March last year helped stabilize economic conditions. The rupee has risen 11.3% in recent months and inflation disappeared, with prices falling 0.8% last month.
The island nation's economy is expected to grow 4.4% this year, the first increase in three years, according to the World Bank.
However, Sri Lanka still needs to complete a $12.5 billion debt restructuring with bondholders, which President Anura Kumara Dissanayake aims to finalize in December.
Sri Lanka will enter into individual agreements with bilateral creditors including Japan, China and India needed to complete a $10 billion debt restructuring, Dissanayake said.
He won the presidency in September, and his leftist coalition won a record 159 seats in the 225-member parliament in a general election last week.