Morocco’s Tax Exemptions Total $3 bln in 2019

Morocco’s Tax Exemptions Total $3 bln in 2019
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Morocco’s Tax Exemptions Total $3 bln in 2019

Morocco’s Tax Exemptions Total $3 bln in 2019

Morocco's tax exemptions totaled 27.78 billion dirhams ($3 billion) this year, down 3 percent from a year ago, according to a report by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

The report noted that this amount constituted 58 percent in total tax exemptions, 29 percent in tax rate reductions, and 8 percent in partial and temporary exemptions and another 5 percent granted in the form of projections, facilities and liabilities.

The share of the real estate sector in the total tax exemptions granted by the government during the current year was about 15.9 percent, compared with 18.9 percent last year.

The social hedging sector’s share came in second with 17.6 percent of the total value of tax exemptions, while the export sector’s share was 10 percent, followed by the agriculture and fishing sector at 9.1 percent, the financial sector at 7 percent and the transport sector at 5 percent. The food industry sector’s share amounted to 4 percent.

According to the types of tax, VAT exemptions topped the ranking by about 51 percent of the total value of tax exemptions in 2019, but fell by about 3 percent compared to 2018, and income tax exemptions (mainly consisting of wages) decreased by 20 percent compared with last year.



Gold Jumps, on Track for Best Week in Over a Year on Safe-haven Demand

FILE PHOTO: Gold bullions are displayed at GoldSilver Central's office in Singapore June 19, 2017. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Gold bullions are displayed at GoldSilver Central's office in Singapore June 19, 2017. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo
TT

Gold Jumps, on Track for Best Week in Over a Year on Safe-haven Demand

FILE PHOTO: Gold bullions are displayed at GoldSilver Central's office in Singapore June 19, 2017. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Gold bullions are displayed at GoldSilver Central's office in Singapore June 19, 2017. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo

Gold prices rose over 1% to hit a two-week peak on Friday, heading for the best weekly performance in more than a year, buoyed by safe-haven demand as Russia-Ukraine tensions intensified.

Spot gold jumped 1.3% to $2,703.05 per ounce as of 1245 GMT, hitting its highest since Nov. 8. US gold futures gained 1.1% to $2,705.30.

Bullion rose despite the US dollar hitting a 13-month high, while bitcoin hit a record peak and neared the $100,000 level.

"With both gold and USD (US dollar) rising, it seems that safe-haven demand is lifting both assets," said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.

Ukraine's military said its drones struck four oil refineries, radar stations and other military installations in Russia, Reuters reported.

Gold has gained over 5% so far this week, its best weekly performance since October 2023. Prices have gained around $173 after slipping to a two-month low last week.

"We understand that the price setback has been used by 'Western world' investors under-allocated to gold to build exposure considering the geopolitical risks that are still around. So we continue to expect gold to rise further over the coming months," Staunovo said.

Bullion tends to shine during geopolitical tensions, economic risks, and a low interest rate environment. Markets are pricing in a 59.4% chance of a 25-basis-points cut at the Fed's December meeting, per the CME Fedwatch tool.

However, "if Fed skips or pauses its rate cut in December, that will be negative for gold prices and we could see some pullback," said Soni Kumari, a commodity strategist at ANZ.

The Chicago Federal Reserve president reiterated his support for further US interest rate cuts on Thursday.

On Friday, spot silver rose 1.8% to $31.34 per ounce, platinum eased 0.1% to $960.13 and palladium fell 0.6% to $1,023.55. All three metals were on track for a weekly rise.