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Morocco to Begin Compulsory Insurance for Natural Disasters Early 2020

Morocco to Begin Compulsory Insurance for Natural Disasters Early 2020
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Morocco to Begin Compulsory Insurance for Natural Disasters Early 2020

Morocco to Begin Compulsory Insurance for Natural Disasters Early 2020

Compulsory insurance against natural and terrorist disaster damages will begin in Morocco in early 2020, according to Nouman Essami, director at the Moroccan Ministry of Economy and Finance.

His comments were made Monday during the opening of the 26th Afro-Asian Federation of Insurance and Reinsurance (FAIR) Conference held in Morocco.

Essami pointed out that the mechanism of securing catastrophic cases in Morocco, whether resulting from nature or from human activities such as terrorism, has been put in place in recent years.

He said all the concerned legal provisions are ready in addition to the formation of a solidarity fund against disasters.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the Supervisory Authority of Insurance and Social Welfare (ACAPS) Hassan Boubrik told Asharq Al-Awsat that the new insurance act will be compulsory and cover all Moroccan residents.

On how the insurance works, Boubrik said it would be included as a special article in all insurance contracts, except for life insurance.

For those who do not have insurance contracts, Boubrik explained that they will benefit from the newly created Disaster Solidarity Fund, whose director has been recently appointed by the Moroccan King.

He said the Fund will be operational starting early 2020.

The Conference kickstarted Monday in Marrakech and witnessed the participation of 1,100 insurance and reinsurance companies from both continents.

The general assembly of the Afro-Asian FAIR has elected Morocco as president of the federation for the next two years.

FAIR’s board of directors handed over the presidency from Bahrain’s Yassir al-Baharna to Morocco’s Youssef Fassi Fihri during the opening ceremony.

The Kingdom is a founding member of the Afro-Asian FAIR in 1964 in line with the implementation of the principles of the Bandung Declaration on cooperation among Non-Aligned Countries.

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Inflation Rose to 2.3% in Europe. That Won't Stop the Central Bank from Cutting Interest Rates

A view shows the Bercy Economy and Finance Ministry as a metro operated by the Paris transport network RATP passes over the Pont de Bercy bridge in Paris, France, November 28, 2024. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
A view shows the Bercy Economy and Finance Ministry as a metro operated by the Paris transport network RATP passes over the Pont de Bercy bridge in Paris, France, November 28, 2024. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
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Inflation Rose to 2.3% in Europe. That Won't Stop the Central Bank from Cutting Interest Rates

A view shows the Bercy Economy and Finance Ministry as a metro operated by the Paris transport network RATP passes over the Pont de Bercy bridge in Paris, France, November 28, 2024. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
A view shows the Bercy Economy and Finance Ministry as a metro operated by the Paris transport network RATP passes over the Pont de Bercy bridge in Paris, France, November 28, 2024. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq

Inflation in the 20 countries that use the euro currency rose in November — but that likely won’t stop the European Central Bank from cutting interest rates as the prospect of new US tariffs from the incoming Trump administration adds to the gloom over weak growth.
The European Union’s harmonized index of consumer prices stood up 2.3% in the year to November, up from 2.0% in October, the EU statistics agency Eurostat reported Friday.
Energy prices fell 1.9% from a year ago, but that was offset by price increases of 3.9% in the services sector, a broad category including haircuts, medical treatment, hotels and restaurants, and sports and entertainment, The Associated Press reported.
Inflation has come down a long way from the peak of 10.6% in October 2022 as the ECB quickly raised rates to cool off price rises. It then started cutting them in June as worries about growth came into sharper focus.
High central bank benchmark rates combat inflation by influencing borrowing costs throughout the economy. Higher rates make buying things on credit — whether a car, a house or a new factory — more expensive and thus reduce demand for goods and take pressure off prices. However, higher rates can also dampen growth.
Growth worries got new emphasis after surveys of purchasing managers compiled by S&P Global showed the eurozone economy was contracting in October. On top of that come concerns about how US trade policy under incoming President Donald Trump, including possible new tariffs, or import taxes on imported goods, might affect Europe’s export-dependent economy. Trump takes office Jan. 20.
The eurozone’s economic output is expected to grow 0.8% for all of this year and 1.3% next year, according to the European Commission’s most recent forecast.
All that has meant the discussion about the Dec. 12 ECB meeting has focused not on whether the Frankfurt-based bank’s rate council will cut rates, but by how much. Market discussion has included the possibility of a larger than usual half-point cut in the benchmark rate, currently 3.25%.
Inflation in Germany, the eurozone’s largest economy, held steady at 2.4%. That “will strengthen opposition against a 50 basis point cut,” said Carsten Brzeski, global chief of macro at ING bank, using financial jargon for a half-percentage-point cut.
The ECB sets interest rate policy for the European Union member countries that have joined the euro currency.